
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. I 







^^,^// 






! UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.! 




f 



-•i»- 




No. 743. 



Crowning Payson's Grave with Flowers. 

Seo page 183 



PAYSON, 

A MODEL BOY; 



OB, EECOLLKCTIONS OF 



JOHN PAYSON WILLISTON CLAEK. 



BY HI^ FATHER. 

% Crue St0rg fax i0gs. 



WITH AN ADDEESS, 
BY REV. ZACHAKY EDDY^, D.D., 

PASTOR OF FIRST CHCRCH IN NORTHAMPTON, MASS. 



FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS. 



0- / V 

icte fork: 



rUBLISHED BY CAELTON & POETEE, 

SUSDAT- SCHOOL DXIOS, SOO MDLBERBY-STBEET. 



-E7^ /7/5- 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by 

CAR LTON & PORTER, 

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for 
the Southern District of New York, 



^ 



EDITOEIAL l^OTE. 



This volume is published at a mucli 
lower price than other books of its size. 
The publishers are enabled to do this 
through the generosity of J. P. Willis- 
ton-, Esq., of JSTorth Hampton, who pre- 
sented the cost of the stereotype plates 
and illustrations to the agents. This lib- 
eral gift is a memento of the benevolent 
donor's affection for the subject of this 
memoir. He doubtless hopes, by giving 
Payson's simple memoir a wide circula- 
tion, to contribute to the reproduction of 
his admirable characteristics in other 
children. The editor sympathizes with 
him in this laudable desire, for Payson 



6 EDITORIAL NOTE. 

appears to have been a really model boy, 
and would suggest tbat any benevolent per- 
son desirous of having any good Sunday- 
school book permanently cheapened may 
do so by paying the cost of the stereotype 
plates and illustrations. If one hundred 
persons would do this we might have one 
hundred volumes published at a very 
cheap rate. D. W. 



co:n"tei^ts. 



CHAPTEE I. 

The Arrival — Village Home— Infant Sunday-School 
— " I want to be an Angel " — PreacMng — Why eat the 
Lord's Supper? p^^^ ^^ 

CHAPTEE II. 

Boys love Wheels -Eailroad Journey -Kew Hom^ 
Play-room and Bantams — "Who Shut the Door?" — 
Sunday-school Picnic -Silver Lake - Grove-meeting 
— -IceEide ^ 

CHAPTEE IIL 

Joy in Duty — Old Farm-house — Cow Boys — How 
to make Work easy — Thunder-storm - Cure for Fear 
—Bouquet for Mother — Dr. Kane's Book — Winter 
Evenings g. 

CHAPTEE lY. 

Boys' Sports^Moral Purity-Never Swear-^ 
" Stick to the Sunday-school " -Home Conduct - Do- 
mestic Pets — Farewell to then^i ...,,. 41 



co:n'tents. 



CHAPTER y. 

By the Ocean — New Things — Sight-seeing — State 
House — Statue of Daniel "Webster — Of Benjamin 
Franklin — Eaneuil Hall — Bunker Hill — The Ship 
Minnesota — Eecreations good and bad Page 50 

CHAPTER YI. 

True Courage — Dare to do Bight — Tempted, but 
Conquers — The Habit of Obedience — Conversation 
with his Mother — "Old Battles'^ — Temperance — 
" Eumstruck Striker" — Miniature Ship " William But- 
ler" launched — House for Mother — '*My Pishing Ex- 
cursion " 61 

CHAPTER YII. 

At Grandfather's House — Character in School — 
Moral Struggles — Franklin's Boyhood — Diary — 
Moral Rules — Sterling Camp-meeting — Dr. Kirk's Ser- 
mon — Tent Prayer-meeting — Great Eain — Shower of 
Grace — Conversion 83 

CHAPTER Yin. 

On Leaving Home — How Boys Feel — The Proposal 
— Last United Song — Evening Interview witb his Moth- 
er — Thanks her for a Former Denial — Enters the 
High School — Found Faithful — Sad News — His Sister 
Emmie's Death 95 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Emmie — Learning — Penitent — Happy — Sick — 
Teacher's Visit — Bible Stories — Presentiment — 
Last Greetings and Parting Words: "Sing to me of 
heaven'' — The Last Kiss — " Eesignation," bj H. W, 
Longfellow Page 104 

CHAPTEE X. 

Days of Sorrow — Boys, write Home — An Amusing 
Letter — "Descending the Hill of Science" — Advice 
about Composition and Declamation — School Speeches 

— " Perseverance " — " Punctuality " — " Hazel Eyes,'* 
by H. J. A 117 

CHAPTER XL 

"Too old to go to Sunday-school!" — Letter to a 
Young Convert — Thanks for Good Advice, Asks for 
More — Letter to a Christian Lady — When will the "War 
End? — Joins the Church — Mound and Flowers on 
Emmie's Grave — Boys in School observed by Business 
Men — Engagement as Clerk — Anticipations of a 
Home Visit — Last Letter Home 131 

CHAPTER XIL 

Flowery Prospects — Eural Town — Parsonage Scene 

— Death Message — Who ? — A Sad Eide — " It is Pay- 
son 1"— Fatal Bath — Mr. G. B. Manley's Letter — Light 
in Darkness 146 



10 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XIII. 

. Day of Sorrow^ Scene in the Scliool-room — Poem, 
''In Memoriam," by H. J. A. — Obsequies — Address 
of Kev. Dr. Eddy — " Buried in Elowers." .... Page 160 

CHAPTER XIY. 

Close of the School Term at Payson^s Grave — Ad- 
dress of the Teacher — " Eesolutions " — The Vacant 
"Comer-seat" — Traits of Character — Eoommate's 
Letter from the Army — M. L. "W. — No true Life lost 
— "Do you Eemember?" by L. C, June 15, 1864. 179 



^llunixnixartB. 



Crowning Payson's Geave with Flowers .... 2 

Father skating round the Sled 27 

Launch of the William Butler 73 

Patson's Death 154 



PAYSON, 

A MODEL BOY. 



CHAPTER I. 



The Arrival — Yillage Home — Infant Sunday-School — 
" I want to be an Angel '' — Preaching — Why eat the 
Lord's Supper ? 

Spring had come again. The snow had 
disappeared, and the soft South winds 
with showers had liberated tree and 
shrub and soil from the ice-prison. The 
leaves were just bursting from the trees, 
and the green grass was shooting up from 
the brown turf, while the early spring 
birds were singing and chirping as they 
returned from the sunny South, Just at 
this opening season a little group of 
strangers were returning from a long 
journey westward, intending to dwell in 



12 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

one of the pleasant villages of New Jer- 
sey. Among them was Payson, the sub- 
ject of our story. 

It was a charming village, built on a 
plain skirted with hills upon the west, 
while on the east the earth gently rose 
into graceful knolls. Through the village 
ran a small stream of water, furnishing 
power for several mills, and giving the 
scene an added touch of beauty. The 
churches lifted their graceful spires to- 
ward the sky, and the hum of business 
was varied by the occasional passing of 
the railroad trains connecting the place 
with a neighboring city. 

After some delay the stranger group 
secured a cottage with a garden. It had 
a pleasant outlook toward the east, and 
both church and school were near; nor 
was it far to the post-ofl&ce and railway 
station. How happy and blessed it is that 
in our free land boys may have the three 
treasures, the home, the school, and the 
church. They are God's precious gifts, 
and under their combined influence good 
and great men are trained for the highest 



A MODEL BOY. 13 

nsefulness on earth, and eternal glory and 
blessedness in heaven. 

I may tell you a little about Payson's 
family. He had an older brother and a 
sister younger than himself whom he 
dearly loved. Many a pleasant hour did 
they spend together in the garden among 
the plants and flowers near the cottage. 
Not far from where he lived was a family 
in which there were several children to 
whom he became strongly attached, and 
frequently they spent an afternoon in 
each other's company. 

While living in this charming village 
Payson became old enough to attend the 
infant Sunday-school, and to begin some 
of the easy studies of childhood. 

One bright Sunday morning in summer, 
while the bells were ringing out their 
first cheering summons for church, Pay- 
son said : 

" Mother, please let us go to church 
with you to-day?" 

The mother had anticipated this re- 
quest, and had made her arrangements to 
take the little ones to the Sunday-school, 



14 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

and perhaps to cliiircli. It was a new 
thing to Payson, and he set out full of 
curiosity and questions. The Sunday- 
school was held in the vestry, and there 
was another apartment in which the 
younger of the scholars were taught by 
themselves. A kind and pleasant lady 
talked to the scholars very sweetly, and 
her words were so plain and simple that 
the little lambs understood and were de- 
lighted with her. She taught them to 
sing some beautiful hymns. Two of these 
became favorites with Payson, '' I want to 
be an angel," and " O come, come away." 
Often afterward did he accompany his 
mother, brother, and sister to church, and 
though too young to understand much of 
the sermons, the various parts of worship 
fixed his attention, and on his return home 
he asked a multitude of questions which 
clearly showed that his mind was not in- 
active during the services, and that it was 
not useless for him to attend. 

Even at this early age, for he was not 
yet four years old, Sunday was not a dull 
day to him, nor to the family cirplej for 



PAYSONj A MODEL BOY. 15 

the hours after service were enjoyed, not 
in the ordinary week-day plays, but in 
some exercise suitable to the day, and 
adapted to their childish years. An em- 
ployment in which Payson took a great 
deal of interest was holding meeting and 
Sunday-school with his brother and sister 
by themselves. In this they were in- 
dulged, for young minds will be occupied. 
In the meetings the chairs were arranged 
for the congregation, his brother and sis- 
ter took the seats he assigned them., and 
by common consent, and by his evident 
preference, Payson was always the preach- 
er. His movements and speech were 
deliberate and grave, and his exhortations 
tO;>be good, to speak the truth, and to 
mind your mother, were earnest and 
clearly meant. The little hymns were 
given out, and all sung heartily and hap- 
pily. When the meeting was ended the 
Sunday-school was held ; but in this Pay- 
son never took the lead, but uniformly 
gave it to his older brother, while he took 
his place as a scholar. 

"Who shall determine that in these child- 



16 PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 

ish. diversions, as some grave lips may call 
them, there is not as much of sincerity 
and real devotion as in the ceremonies of 
the gorgeous cathedral ? True it is that 
the eyes of one unobserved looked quietly 
and approvingly upon these doings of her 
children. 

One Sunday the mother with her three 
children went to church, and in addition 
to the usual services the Lord's supper 
was administered. The children ob- 
served the people going forward to the 
table and kneeling, while solemn hymns 
were sounding through the church. Pay- 
son watched group after group as they 
advanced, took the bread and the cup, 
and retired to their seats. His mother 
bade the children remain quietly in the 
pew while she went forward to obey the 
Lord's command, "Do this in remem- 
brance of me." They watched her every 
motion, and after they had returned 
home Payson, with a very serious face, be- 
gan to ask many questions. 

" Mother, what was it that you ate in 
the church?" 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 17 

"Bread, my son." 

" "What was in the cup from which you 
drank ? was it water ?" 

"ITo; it was wine, or the juice of 
grapes." 

" What do folks eat and drink in the 
church for ? Because they are hungry ?" 

''No; but it is because the Lord Jesus 
Christ has recommended us to do so." 

" Why does he want them to do so ?" 

" Just before he was crucified he ate 
and drank bread and wine with his disci- 
ples, and he told them to do the same 
after he was put to death, and while do- 
ing it to think of him and of his death." 

"But why don't they eat and drink 
something else ?" 

" Because Jesus told them to use bread 
and wine ; and he also told them that the 
bread meant his body, which should be 
broken or wounded on the cross ; and the 
wine meant his blood which should flow 
from his wounds." 

This solemn ceremony and the explana- 
tion given of it made a very deep impres- 
sion upon his mind, and in the little 



18 PAYSOlSr, A MODEL BOY. 

meetings which he afterward held, he 
often made very touching reference to 
this observance. 

Thus passed away the two happy years 
which he spent in that delightful village. 
I will not detain you to tell of the long 
and serious illness which fell upon him 
during the second year, from the effects 
of which he never fully recovered. In 
playing with his hatchet, hammer, and 
book, and in going to his Sunday-school, 
he took real delight ; and his obedience 
to his father and mother, and kindness 
and patience toward his playmates, great- 
ly endeared him to all who knew him. 

" In books, or work, or healthful play, 
Let my first years be past. 
That I may give for every day 
Some good account at last." 



PAYSON, A MODEL EOT. 19 



CHAPTER 11. 

Boys love Wheels— Eailroad Journey — New Home — ■ 
Play-room and Bantams — "Who Shut the Door?" — 
Sunday-school Picnic — Silver Lake — Grove-meeting 
— Ice Eide. 

Who ever knew a boy that did not love 
the locomotive ? who would not throw by 
his toys and leave his sports to run and 
gaze upon the rushing, roaring railway 
train, as it was shooting along the track 
through the town ? A boy loves wheels 
and rapid motion, and his first ride in the 
cars he long remembers. Payson was 
now about to make a long journey by 
railroad; he was to leave his Sunday- 
school, his garden play-ground in this 
charming village, to find a home else- 
where. 

In the interior of New England, on the 
line of a prominent railroad, lies a quiet 
village, almost as old as the earliest set- 
tlements. South of it glides a stream of 
water, whose banks are skirted with 
2 



20 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

meadows, luxuriant in summer with grass 
and flowers. In the midst of the village 
spreads out a spacious common ; the 
churches and other public buildings look 
down upon it as if admiring its rich ver- 
dure, and the thrifty growth of its shade- 
trees. A short distance to the south-west 
lies a placid sheet of water, shut in par- 
tially by shady trees, furnishing a charm- 
ing place for row-boats and sail-boats, and 
abounding with fish. At a short distance 
from the village, on the north and on the 
south, rise hills, shorn, save in rare spots, 
of forest trees, and affording pastures for 
sheep and cows. 

One day in the month of April the 
passing railway train left at the station a 
party, consisting of Payson and the rest 
of his father's household. They immedi- 
ately proceeded to a dwelling set apart 
for their use, and in a few days Payson 
was fairly settled in his new home. The 
house was commodious, and one room in 
the second story was set apart for the 
children's play-room, where they kept 
their toys and treasures, and where they 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 21 



arranged matters to suit themselves. The 
walls they adorned with pictures cut from 
the pictorials ; and here they amused 
themselves with using their tools, cut- 
ting, sawing, and hammering to their 
■hearts' content. Here the boys first came 
to own live stock. Two white fowls were 
given them by a friend, and they never 
became tired of caring for their favorite 
bantams. 

Pay son became fond of books very early. 
He learned the alphabet while it was be- 
ing taught to his brother, by looking over 
his shoulder ; and before his friends had 
taken any pains to teach him, he had 
mastered it, and was trying to form let- 
ters with a pencil on the slate. But here 
he first went to school. It was a private 
school taught by a lady, and the number 
of scholars was limited. 

In this school an incident occurred, 
trifling, it is true, but it shows his charac- 
ter. The teacher had occasion to leave 
the school-room to go into an adjoining 
apartment, and that she might keep an 
eye upon the conduct of the scholars, she 



22 PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 

left the door ajar. Payson's seat was be- 
hind the door, and as the teacher passed 
out, in pleasant roguery he closed the 
door. The teacher returned and sternly 
demanded, 

" Who shut that door ?" 
Several answered '^Payson." 
" I don't believe it ; I feel quite sure 
that he is too good a boy to do that. 
Tell me the truth, Who shut the door V 
Again it was answered " Payson.'' 
She then turned to him and said, " Can 
you tell me who shut the door ?" 
He answered ^' I did it, ma'am." 
The incident shows the teacher's con- 
fidence in him, his inclination to sly fun, 
and his truthfulness ; but he should have 
been more frank, and have answered her 
question at once. 

When the Fourth of July arrived, the 
Sunday-schools of the village held a union 
picnic in the grove near the margin of the 
lake that has been described. Each 
school assembled at its usual place of 
meeting, formed in procession, and 
marched with its banners to the common, 



PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 23 

where the grand procession was formed. 
From thence, with martial music and 
under the folds of the "stars and stripes," 
they marched to the grove. There, under 
the shade of the oaks and maples, upon 
the green turf, were arranged long tables, 
loaded with luscious food. After the 
singing and speeches 'hundreds of little 
mouths were busy in devouring the feast 
provided for them. And now for a ram- 
ble in the grove and along the banks of 
Silver Lake ! Kind teachers accompanied 
them and watched oVer them, and the 
pleasant impressions of that celebration 
will go down through life in the memories 
of those happy Sunday-school scholars. 

It was pleasant to Payson as he walked 
hand in hand with his teacher to hear 
her speak of the green trees, of the cool 
waters reflecting the sunlight, and of the 
blue sky over all, as fashioned by our 
heavenly Father. How great and wise 
and good he is ! All his works do praise 
him. 

The summer glided on, and brought 
that season of the year when some of 



24 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

God's people resort to the grove to wor- 
ship their Father and Saviour. Among 
those who intended to go from the vil- 
lage were two teachers, who entreated 
that they might take the boys with them, 
and arrangements were made to comply 
with this request. That was a delightful 
day when Payson and his brother first 
entered the grove consecrated to religious 
worship. The preachers' stand, the spa- 
cious circle of snow-white tents, the long 
rows of seats, and the joyous hymns and 
songs echoing through the woods, arrested 
and delighted their young minds. The 
religious sentiment is a universal feeling, 
and sways the young as well as the old ; 
the unlearned, as truly as those advanced 
in knowledge and disciplined by study. 
The means there used to promote the 
spiritual welfare of the attendants are not 
only preaching, prayer, and singing, but 
also personal private conversation. One 
of the teachers, while conversing with 
Payson, ascertained that his thoughts and 
feelings were much exercised on religious 
subjects, and urged him to give his heart 



PAYSOI^, A MODEL BOY. 25 

to Christ. She explained in simple lan- 
guage the way to be saved. He an- 
swered that he did love Christ, and if he 
had two hearts he " should give . them 
both to Jesus." 

"When the winter came. Silver Lake 
was bridged from shore to shore with 
thick, strong ice, smooth as a mirror. 
Snow covered the earth, and Payson's 
first sled was finished and painted green, 
bearing his brother's name and his own. 
" Now, boys," said their father one day, 
'' now for a ride and a slide on the lake. 
Put on your coats, caps, and mittens, and 
let us go." 

Payson was eager for sport at suitable 
times, and the boys were soon ready. 
Their father took his skates, and the boys 
proudly seated themselves on the sled, 
and the party set out for the lake. The 
air was clear and cold, but the sun shone 
out in unclouded brightness. Passing 
through the fields, they reached the banks 
of the lake. 

" Hold on fast, boys," said their father, 
" while we go down the bank.^' 



26 PAYSOJSr, A MODEL BOY. 

And in a few minutes, away went tlie 
sled and its tappy load upon the glairy 
ice. Their father then put on his skates, 
and after cutting a few circles about them 
by way of adjusting the skates firmly to 
his feet, he seized the rope to give them a 
swift ride upon the ice. 

" See, boys," said their father, " what 
a strong bridge God has made over this 
deep water ! It is stronger than any man 
could make, and smoother too." 

" This is fine sport, father," replied one 
of the boys, " to go so swift and still over 
the ice." 

" I am glad you enjoy it : but hold on 
fast now, for I am going to send you on 
alone." And with this he checked his own 
speed, but sent the sled whirling and slid- 
ing along upon the smooth surface, and it 
passed on along distance before it stopped. 

" Hurrah !" said Payson ; '' that's first- 
rate ; do it again, father." 

The skater soon came up, and taking the 
rope said, 

" That will do for the present. Do you 
see that man or boy walking at the other 




No. 743. 



Father Skating Round the Sled. 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 29 

end of the lake ? Let us go and see what 
he is doing." 

And away they went. On the right 
was a grove of forest trees, which broke 
the force of the wind blowing from that 
quarter. On, on, they went, the wind 
whistling about their ears because of their 
speed, until they reached a long row of 
holes cut through the ice. Near each 
hole was a stake, and attached to the 
stake was a fish-line and baited hook. 
They found that the man was watching 
the lines and .securing the fish. He had 
taken a few, and they lay upon the ice 
frozen stiff. After they had taken a cir- 
cuit around the fishing-grounds they set 
out on their return. Passing over a spot 
of ice clear as glass, the objects beneath 
could be distinctly seen, quite to the bot- 
tom of the water.. There were patches of 
grass growing from the bottom, among 
which the fish could be seen darting 
about, pursuing each other, and hiding 
beneath the grass. 

''How much of happiness, boys, does 
God give to his creatures," said the father. 



30 

'' Tlie fish are happy below the ice, and 
yon are happy above it. But see, the sun 
is near setting ; let us now go home." 

That was a pleasant afternoon for Pay- 
son and his brother. They ate their sup- 
per with a keener appetite than usual. 
They prayed their evening prayers, which 
they were careful never to forget, and were 
soon fast asleep, dreaming of the day's de- 
lights, and of the wonderful world of which 
they were learning more and more every 
day. 

"Tliy angels shall around their beds 

Their constant stations keep ; 
Thy faith and truth shall shield their heads, 

For thou dost never sleep." 



PATSON, A MODEL BOY. 31 



CHAPTER III. 

J07 in Duty — Old Farm-liouse — Cow Boys — How to 
make Work easy — Thunder-storm — Cure for Fear — 
Bouquet for Mother — Dr. Kane's Book — Winter 
Evenings. 

Boys of all ages who are disposed to 
make themselves useful, can find some- 
thing for their hands to do in any family 
where they may live ; and if they have 
learned how to enjoy duty and useful em- 
ployment, they may be happy almost any- 
where, either in the city or in the country. 
This is a valuable lesson to learn, and the 
boy who has learned it, or who is trying 
to learn it, secures a treasure of greater 
value than the Philosopher's Stone, which 
was supposed to have the power to turn 
all baser metals into gold. Joy in duty 
makes it possible to be happy all along 
the common path of life. Payson was 
learning this secret ; and on his removal 
to a fine old homestead, he was happy in 
the humble duties which he there per- 
formed. 



32 PAYSOIS", A MODEL BOY. 

A farm is a little world, and it contains 
a great many interesting things. There 
stands the old shade tree, kindly shelter- 
ing the children to-day, as it spread its 
shade over their grandparents years ago. 
There lies the rich mellow soil of the gar- 
den, more rich and productive for the cul- 
ture of a hundred years. Enter the old 
farm-house ; and the spacious rooms, the 
old-fashioned wainscoting, and wide fire- 
places, carry you back in thought to the 
olden times. In the pig-sty you see gen- 
tlemen of thrift and leisure, who shout 
lustily at the delay of their dinner. Pass 
on to the commodious barn ; on one side 
of the long floor, and piled to the roof, 
are great mows of hay ; on the other are 
ranged the stalls for the fat sleek horses, 
for the gentle cows, which give brimming 
pails of milk, and for the stout and pa- 
tient oxen. In various directions from 
the house lie the rich acres of meadow and 
upland, bearing the different crops of the 
farmer. Distant some miles is the wood 
lot, which furnishes the fuel for the win- 
ter's fire. But the pasture for the cows, 



payso:n', a model boy. 33 

in which Payson and his brother felt a 
peculiar interest, was two miles from the 
old homestead. 

Boys have duties, as well as men ; and 
the boy that does his work promptly and 
cheerfully is as worthy of praise as a man. 
IsTow one of the duties of Payson and his 
brother, during the summer months, was 
to drive the cows to pasture in the morn- 
ing, and home again at night. The road 
lay partly along the bank of a river, then 
across a plain, and in part through pretty 
thick woods. When the weather was 
pleasant, the morning wulk was delight- 
ful. "Whistling, and shouting to the cows 
as they marched along to the tinkling of 
the cow-bell, they soon came to the en- 
trance of the pasture, and when the cows 
were turned in and the bars securely put 
up, they walked home again while the 
early birds were singing in the trees by 
the roadside, or to the music of their own 
thoughts or voices. 

My young reader, did you ever think 
that work done cheerfully is really much 
easier than work done reluctantly, and 



34 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

with a sour and surly temper ? And it is 
generally done much better, and it tires 
you less. 

But the weather was not always pleas- 
ant; sometimes the rain fell, the roads 
were muddy, and the bushes wet ; but the 
cows must not go hungry. One hot sum- 
mer afternoon Payson and his brother set 
off after them, but before they reached the 
pasture, a huge black cloud rose up in the 
west ; it rose higher and higher, and the 
air grew dark, .and they had not found 
the cows ; but they searched for them 
through the woods and bushes. Before 
they found them it began to rain ; the 
clouds sprinkled them from above, and 
the dripping bushes wet them as they ran 
along. After a long search they found 
the cows, and with much trouble they 
drove them out of the pasture and into 
the road toward home. All this time the 
thunder was roaring, the lightning flash- 
ing, and the rain poured upon them ; 
but they persevered in their duty with 
brave hearts, unterrified by the thunder- 
shower. 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 35 



Meanwhile the family at the farm-house 
became anxious for the boys, and dis- 
patched a messenger for them. He met 
them about a mile from home, cheering 
on the cows ; but their clothes were coni- 
pletely drenched, and they were wet to 
the skin. 

"Were you afraid?" asked the messen- 
ger. 

" No, sir." 

"What made you so long in coming 
home ?" 

" The cows were hid in the bushes, and 
we had hard work to find them." 

" But did not the thunder and lightning 
frighten you?" 

" O no, sir ; we thought God would 
take care of us." 

Both Payson and his brother had been 
taught to look upon God as a father and 
friend ; and though they had been told 
that houses, trees, and persons were some- 
times struck by lightning, yet it is always 
our privilege to trust in God's protection 
while in the way of duty. A pious and 
venerable revolutionary soldier once told 



36 payso:n"5 a model boy. 

his grandson, " My boy, when you are in 
the way of duty you are in the way of a 
blessing." 

Many persons are dreadfully terrified 
in a thunder-storm, and sufier more than 
words can express from fear. Much of 
this is the result of wrong instruction and 
false impressions made upon them when 
very young. There is a wholesome fear 
of ofiending our wise, kind, and righteous 
Father in heaven, which we ought always 
to feel even in the time of sunshine as 
well as in the storm. But there is also a 
slavish fear of suffering and just punish- 
m'ent which is produced by our sense of 
sin and guilt ; and this is a most distress- 
ing feeling, especially when it is excited 
by seeing the power of God flashing in the 
lightning and in the roaring of the storm 
and tempest. The disciple of Christ, the 
praying, honest, duty-doing boy may be 
saved from all this awful fear by a firm 
and humble trust in God. 

Not far from the old farm-house the 
boys had assigned to them a small patch 
of ground for a garden. The soil was 



PAYSOJS-, A MODEL BOY. 37 

rich, mellow, and free from stones, and 
here Payson planted his pop corn and 
potatoes. Here too was laid out a flower- 
bed. He did not consider the time spent 
in his own garden as labor, but as a 
pleasant recreation. He greatly enjoyed 
watching the springing blades of corn and 
the cracking of the soil as the seeds 
pushed up their first tiny leaves into the 
sunlight. As the time ran on the flowers 
began to bloom, and it was with perfect 
delight that he culled and carried the first 
bouquet from his garden to his mother. In 
the fertile soil the plants not only grew 
rapidly, but some of them were uncom- 
monly large and beautiful, which added 
greatly to the pleasure of the little gar- 
dener. Why should it not be as inter- 
esting and improving to boys and girls to 
watch the signs of the wisdom, power, and 
goodness of God in the growing plants 
and in the beautiful and fragrant flowers ? 
Some one calls the flowers " the smiles of 
God;" and is it not worth all the toilet 
costs to plant and cultivate them, to en- 
joy these his visible smiles ? 
3 



88 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

*' We behold their tender buds expand, 

Emblems of our own great resurrection ; 
Emblems of the bright and better land." 

Before closing this chapter I will tell 
you how Payson obtained a very enter- 
taining and instructive book, which occu- 
pied his time many long winter evenings. 
In the juvenile papers with which his 
parents furnished him he had read notices 
of Dr. Kane's Expedition to the Arctic 
Eegions, and was filled with a strong de- 
sire to read the book. When his father 
was visiting a friend that book became 
the theme of conversation. The gentle- 
man said, " If you have never read the 
work a rich treat awaits you in its pe- 
rusal. I have read it to my family, and 
we were all highly entertained." 

"If you have read it," replied his fa- 
ther, "perhaps you«would loan it to my 
boys ; they have expressed a strong desire 
to read it." 

" I don't lend books to boys," was the 
reply. 

On his return home his father related 
the circumstance in the presence of the 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 39 

boys, when Payson, now about nine years 
old, standing up his full height, very de- 
liberately, but resolutely, said : 

''Well, I think we will have the book 
on our own account, and no particular 
thanks to Mr. T. either." 

So he entered into an arrangement with 
his brother that they would earn and 
save all the money they could until they 
had obtained enough to buy the book. 
They persevered in this plan for about a 
year and a half, when they had secured 
funds sufficient to procure the two vol- 
umes, costing four dollars. That was a 
happy day when they gained possession 
of the long-desired treasure. 

"Where there's a will there's a way,'' 
was a favorite maxim with Payson, and 
by determination, economy, and perse- 
verance in this case he gained his object. 

"Is learning your ambition? 

There is no royal road ; 
Alike the peer and peasant 
Must climb to her abode. 
Who feels the thirst of knowledge 

In Helicon may slake it, 
If he has still the Eoman will 
* To find a way or make it.' " 



40 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



He did not neglect his regular lessons 
to read this book, but having mastered 
them he cheerfully sat down and read to 
his mother, while she plied the needle by 
the evening fire. 

It is a shining virtue in a boy to be 
kind to his mother, and to be ready to 
deny himself to secure the comfort of that 
dear friend who has done and suffered 
more for him than any other earthly 
friend. Those were pleasant and profita- 
ble evenings ; the son was acquiring use- 
ful and entertaining knowledge, secured 
from the corrupting influence of the 
streets, forming positively good habits of 
thought and action, and at the same time 
lightening the hours and toils of a hard- 
working mother. 

My young reader, you may be sure that 
the happiness of a dutiful son, who takes 
delight in making his mother happy, is of 
a very pure and noble and lasting nature. 
Secure that happiness by being kind to 
your mother. 



PAYSON. A MODEL BOY. 41 



CHAPTER lY. 

Boys' Sports — Moral Purity — Never Swear — " Stick 
to the Sunday-School " — Home Conduct — Domestic 
Pets — Farewell to them. 

It is good for boys to have plenty of out- 
door exercise; it improves their health, 
develops their muscles, gives them com- 
mand of their physical powers, and exhil- 
arates their spirits. "While they should 
not neglect the tasks assigned them for 
the convenience of the families in vt^hich 
they live, some time should be given them 
for active and healthful sportive exercises. 
Let them drive the hoop, throw, smite, and 
catch the flying ball, shoot the arrow, glide 
over the ice on their skates, and slide down 
the hill in the frosty air of winter. Such 
sports, properly indulged in, at appropri- 
ate times, promote contentment and good 
morals, as well as health. The old maxim, 

*' AR work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy ; 
All play and no work, makes Jack a mere toy;" 

contains important truth. 



42 PAYS0^"5 A MODEL BOY. 

Payson was fond of active sports, and 
what boy in health is not ? I am quite 
snre my youthful reader is. But there are 
moral evils to be avoided while engaged 
in them. It is not best to go out in all 
sorts of company. 

One pleasant winter's day, when a thick 
hard crust covered the snow, and the sun 
was pleasantly shining, Payson and his 
brother took their sleds and their little 
sister, and went out into the lot in the rear 
of the house, to slide down hill. She was 
warmly wrapped up in her woolen cloak, 
a fur tippet about her neck, a warm neat 
hood drawn over her neck and ears, and 
her little hands cased in thick mittens. 
O how her eyes sparkled and her cheeks 
glowed and her lips were wreathed in 
smiles, as they ran with her across the 
hard and glittering crust ! With shouts 
and loud laughter they shot down the 
hill, and then, with many a tumble, they 
clambered again to the top. In a short 
time their sport and noise drew to the 
place three boys, to join them in their 
play. For a while all went on pleasantly, 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 43 

but at length one of the boys began to 
swear, and tease the little girl, and to 
speak to her in filthy language. This 
roused the indignation of her brothers, 
and Payson said to him, very decidedlj", 

" Hush up all such talk as that here ! 
We sha'n't have it in our lot." 

" What if you can't help yourself?" 

"Don't you know better than to speak 
such words as you have used ? It is wick- 
ed and shameful! Quit, or begone, for 
this is our ground." 

His decision, which was seconded by his 
brother, made the boy feel that it was best 
to leave. After he was gone, Payson and 
his brother returned to the house with 
their sister, and related their adventure 
to their mother, who gave them good coun- 
sel. Though but nine years old at this 
time, and greatly enjoying the amusement 
of " coasting," he was much disturbed by 
this profane intrusion upon their innocent 
play, and gave a merited and decided re- 
buke to the intruder. 

** Maintain your rank ; vulgarity despise ; 
To swear is neither brave, polite,- nor wise." 



44: PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

A great many boys forget this, and use 
such language as would make their moth- 
ers blush with shame for its filthiness. 
This habit shows a low, degraded heart ; 
it corrupts the speaker and the. hearer, 
and prepares the way for the most abom- 
inable vices and crimes which disgrace 
human nature. Let every boy who reads 
these pages remember that vulgar, unclean 
language is an insult and an offense to 
every virtuous person, that it lowers them 
in the esteem of all good people, and that 
it is a sin against God ; for the inspired 
apostle declares that "no unclean person 
has any inheritance in the kingdom of 
Christ and of God." (Eph. v, 3-5.) I 
want you to turn to your Testament and 
read those verses. 

Did you ever sit down and think how 
wicked and foolish and awful a thing it is 
to curse and swear, and take the holy 
name of God in vain ? A great many 
men do it ; a great many boys do it ; but 
that does not make it right. "Though 
hand join in hand, the wicked shall not 
go unpunished." It is very foolish; for 



PAYSOK^ A MODEL BOY. 45 

can any reasonable person suppose that 
the great, good, and holy God will take 
up the quarrel of every thoughtless and 
angry boy, and really curse the person or 
thing whom he is asked to curse or damn ? 
It is very wicked, for it is doing just the 
thing which God has forbidden ; for he 
has said, " Thou shalt not take the name 
of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord 
will not hold him guiltless that taketh his 
name in vain." It is dangerous to do it; 
for the passionate or reckless boy in words 
calls upon the Almighty Lord of heaven 
and earth to let loose his curses and wrath, 
either upon himself or some one else. If 
you would but seriously think how great 
and how good the Lord is ; that it is he 
who has fashioned and upholds the sun 
and stars ; that it is he who manages the 
vast ocean, and controls the storms ; that 
it is he who gives you flowers, fruits, 
health, friends, and every good thing you 
have ; who, in love to you, commands 
'^ Swear not at all ;" you would cheerfully 
obey him, and so bridle your tongue that 
no profane word should ever pass your lips. 



46 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

Payson was never known to swear. 

The Sunday-scliool affords an oppor- 
tunity to boys to improve in various ways, 
in mind, morals, and piety. There are 
constant streams of information flowing 
out from it into the minds of the scholars, 
historical and geographical as well as re- 
ligious, in their intercourse with teachers 
and with each other. The primary object 
of the Sunday-school is to teach the word 
of God and the way to heaven, but many 
incidental advantages are also secured. 
The frequent concerts for public recita- 
tion furnish facilities for cultivating the 
habit of speaking with composure and 
correctness, in the presence of the school, 
the pieces or verses they have learned. 
Payson embraced those opportunities, and 
in his recitations plainly showed improve- 
ment from time to time. The lessons he 
there learned, and the books he drew from 
the library, exerted a controlling influence 
upon his conduct and character. He sel- 
dom appeared in his class without having 
faithfully studied his lesson. 

A boy's real character shows itself in 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 47 

the family circle, among his brothers and 
sisters. If he is kind, truthful, and oblig- 
ing there, you may depend upon it he will 
show himself the same elsewhere. 'No 
member of the family was more beloved 
than Payson. His brothers and sisters 
found in him one who was willing to help 
them and amuse them. "When he made 
his first boat, and had rigged it complete, 
he took his younger brothers and sisters 
to the small pond that they might see him 
sail it. He manifested extreme fondness 
for those too young to go to church, and 
would often remain at home in care of 
them while his mother went, for half a 
day at a time. 

About this time he took his first lessons 
in milking the cow, and felt his responsi- 
bility in taking care of the fowls, to which 
he became strongly attached. He learned 
to ride and drive the horse which was 
used to convey the family to church. 
After a few tumbles he was able to ride 
on horseback with safety and comfort. 
It was a proud day for him when he was 
trusted with the horse and wagon to go to 



48 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

the railroad station to meet and bring 
home his father. "When he had put the 
harness npon old "Eobin," and had at- 
tached him to the wagon, he carefully 
examined every strap and buckle to see 
that all was right, and then taking his 
seat, he cracked the whip and gayly drove 
out of sight of the old home. 

But the time drew near when this 
pleasant spot must be left. He was soon 
to leave the charming grove, the pleasant 
garden, and these domestic pets must pass 
into other hands. That was a sad day 
for Payson when he saw one man drive 
off the horse, another lead away the cow, 
and he could not keep back the tears 
when his favorite fowls were sold and car- 
ried off also. 

His father was an itinerant minister, 
and in serving the different societies of the 
Church it was necessary to make remov- 
als every few years; but Payson had a 
strong desire to retain his favorite fowls 
and animals, and with a sad face he said 
to his father : 

" Why don't you give up the itinerancy 



PAYSON", A MODEL BOY. 49 

and locate, for in constantly moving about 
we never can have anything we can 
keep?" 

We shall find him in the next chapter 
in the midst of scenes to him quite new. 
His losses are made up by gains. 



60 PATSON, A MODEL BOY. 



CHAPTER Y. 

By the Ocean — New Things — Sight-seeing — State 
House — Statue of Daniel Webster — Of Benjamin 
Franklin — Faneuil Hall — Bunker Hill — The Ship 
Minnesota — Eecreations, good and bad. 

Ko one who looks out upon the ocean 
for the first time but is moved with feel- 
ings of wonder and admiration. There is 
no limit to the sight but where the sky 
and water seem to meet and kiss each 
other in the far-off distance. The great 
waves come swellings rolling, and break- 
ing upon the shore. Far off sail, in 
silence and graceful majesty, the white- 
winged ships, hastening with the wind to 
their destination. 

Near the sea was Payson's next new 
home ; from it the wide waters could be 
seen, and in the quiet of the evening the 
surges could be heard belaboring the 
rocks and the sounding shore. 

On an eminence near the parsonage a 
wide view of sea and land could be en- 
joyed, and all the dwellings in the village 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 51 

were plainly seen. In one direction yon 
behold the serpentine river winding its 
way through meadows to the sea ; in 
another the railway train, crowned with 
smoke and steam, rushing along the iron 
track ; and still further off are seen the 
light-houses and the islands of the harbor. 

In a few weeks after the removal the 
itinerants were settled down in their new 
abode, devoting themselves to the tasks 
of their situation. 

While in his new home Payson attend- 
ed school during the most of one term; 
but on account of ill-health v/as obliged to 
leave the school, and for the rest of the 
year he pursued his studies at home as his 
state of health would allow. Opportuni- 
ties were afforded him to visit some pub- 
lic places of interest, and among them the 
State House at Boston, which stands upon 
the highest eminence in the city, and 
commands a view of the surrounding 
country for several miles. As he ap- 
proached the great edifice he saw on the 
right the statue of Daniel "Webster, his 
head uncovered, and in his hand a scroll. 



52 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

There, quite as large as life, stood the 
great man, whose life Payson had read 
with the keenest pleasure. Passing up 
the stone steps he entered Doric Hall, 
and observed the cannon placed there, 
and toot a long look at the marble statue 
of Washington standing in the recess be- 
yond the railing. Then he read the old 
inscriptions on the stone slabs placed on 
the east wall of the spacious hall. The 
next proceeding was to register his name 
in a great book kept for that purpose on 
a desk near the foot of the stairs before 
going up to the cupola. All visitors to 
the cupola are required to enter their 
names in this book. He then began to 
run up the stairs, but he soon became 
tired of this, and was content to go slower. 
At last he reached the Observatory, and a 
beautiful scene was spread out before him 
whichever way he looked. The Arsenal 
at Watertown, Harvard College at Cam- 
bridge, the Navy Yard^ and Bunker Hill 
Monument at Charlestown, and nearer 
by the great reservoir of the Cochituate 
Waterworks, from which the people of 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 53 

Boston are supplied, were among the in- 
teresting objects he saw from this lofty 
look-out. The shipping in the harbor 
and the ocean steamers were also looked 
upon with interest and delight. 

He next visited the senate chamber, and 
for a long time stood looking at the mus- 
ket, drum, and cap used in the time of the 
Eevolutionary War, which hang up over 
the door, and at the portraits of the gov- 
ernors and distinguished men suspended 
on the walls. Then he went into the 
Hall of the House of Representatives ; 
and as the legislature was not in session 
the room was not in the best order, and 
he said it looked like a great school-room ; 
and looking up he discovered the huge 
codfish suspended from the ceiling, and 
asked, "What is that there for?" 

He was told that it was there as a symbol 
of one of the great industrial occupations 
of the people of Massachusetts. He play- 
fully remarked that he did not know but 
it might mean that the " codfish aris- 
tocracy" met there. 

Looking upon the gilt spread-eagle 



54 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

perched above the speaker's desk, and the 
long streamer waving from its beak in 
blue and gold, he read the words, JEnse 
petit jplacidain sub libertate qiiietem. 
That, said his gnide, is the motto of the 
State of Massachusetts, '^By the sword 
she seeks peace under liberty." 

He was afterward shown the office of 
the Secretary of State, where he saw 
many clerks busy at their desks, and great 
piles of manuscripts and long rows of vol- 
umes of public documents and reports, 
which have been gathering year by year 
since the first settlement of the country. 
He noticed that the office had iron doors 
and iron-covered window-shutters, and 
that everything was made very strong. 
He asked the reason, and his guide told 
him that the books and papers of this 
office are of very great value, and it was 
' necessary not only to make them secure 
against robbers and rogues, but also to 
make them safe against fire. 

Having spent as much time in the 
State House as he could spare, he left the 
spot so dear to every Massachusetts man 



PAYS0^^5 A MODEL BOY. 55 

and boy, and went down the street and 
soon reached an open space in front of 
the conrt-honse, where stood a statue of 
one of the great men of America, whose 
name is familiar, or ought to be, to every 
boy in the nation, Benjamin Franklin. 
There he stood, with his hat under his 
arm, his great bald forehead exposed to 
every storm, with a most frank, humor- 
ous countenance, looking down upon the 
spectators with a funny expression on his 
face, as if he was saying to those near him 
some of those wise and weighty maxims 
which he used to print in his almanacs. 
Payson watched this figure, gazed at it 
from every side, read the inscriptions on 
its base, and could hardly be persuaded 
to leave the spot. 

These opportunities for observation he 
not only greatly enjoyed, but improved. 
They furnished him subjects of useful 
conversation, and were made the theme 
of compositions. They were really ed- 
ucating him, and expanding his mind to 
higher and nobler thoughts and purposes. 
They v>'ere such a variation from his reg- 



56 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

ular course of school studies that lie re- 
turned to tliein refreshed and encouraged 
to pursue them. 

Some time after he was allowed to 
visit other noted places in the vicinity of 
his home. He went to Boston and visited 
Faneuil Hall, known far and wide as the 
cradle of liberty. This noted edifice was 
the gift of Peter Faneuil to the City of 
Boston in 1742. It is one hundred feet 
long and eighty feet wide ; at one end of 
the hall is a large painting of Daniel 
Webster addressing the United States 
Congress, in reply to Col. Hayne, of 
South Carolina; on the walls are also 
portraits of many other distinguished 
men. After spending some time in this 
interesting spot he went to one still more 
celebrated, to Bunker Hill Monument, in 
Charlestown. After walking all over 
that memorable ground, once wet with 
the blood of so many brave and patriotic 
men in the Revolutionary struggle for in- 
dependence, he went into the little office 
kept by a man at the foot of the tall pyr- 
amid of granite, and obtained permisaioa 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 57 

to ascend to the top. The stairs are in 
the interior of the monument, winding 
about in spiral form, and are of granite. 
Payson records in his diary, which he had 
then kept for two months or more, that 
"the monument is two hundred and 
twenty-one feet high, and is ascended by 
two hundred and ninety-five steps." 

The view from the top is of surpassing 
interest. The City of Boston lies at your 
feet, and all the surrounding towns and 
cities are clearly distinguished. From the 
monument he went to the -Navy Yard, 
where lay long rows of cannon and vast 
heaps of cannon balls. Here he observed 
the docks and ships, and went on board 
the Minnesota, a man-of-war which was 
undergoing repairs. He obtained a splin- 
ter, which he carried home, and ever after 
preserved as a memento of his visit, and 
of that celebrated vessel which has done 
good service for the defense and honor of 
our flag. 

Christian parents do well to conduct 
their children of suitable age and at prop- 
er times to scenes of naval and historic 



58 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

interest ; to show them objects of which 
they read in books, making the young 
mind leap with inexpressible joy. It is a 
needed relief from the sameness of dayly 
life, and not only affords the young heart 
pleasure, but awakens thought and in- 
quiry. It stimulates to a higher and 
more healthful activity, and binds the 
heart of children to their parents. It 
shows that parental interest in their en- 
joyments which they do not at once dis- 
cover in those authoritative commands 
which all faithful parents are obliged to 
enforce. These are those innocent and 
healthful pleasures which both parents 
and children can partake of together ; and 
they will prepare the youth to receive 
with more of confidence those prohibitions 
of pleasures which corrupt and destroy. 
There are many delightful places to which 
parents may at times lead their little 
ones : to the sea-shore, to the river-side, 
to the grove, to the hill top, or the mount- 
ain summit; to the wharf, to the manu- 
factory, to scenes altogether new and full 
of interest to the young. My young 



PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 59 



readers, I am confident, would all vote to 
enjoy some siicli recreations as these ; and 
on their return home I think it would not 
be strange if some of them set about mak- 
ing a waterwheel, a ship, or a locomotive ; 
or if they should try to draw a picture 
of a waterfall, or write a composition 
describing the landscape or mountain 
scenery they had visited. I am in favor 
of letting the boys have a chance to grow, 
to grow tall and strong like the oak, and 
of keeping them out of low and corrupt- 
ing places. 

One of the bad places for the education 
of boys is the streets of the city or village, 
especially after nightfall. They are al- 
most sure to fall into bad company and 
bad habits if allowed to rove the streets at 
night. You may think it one of the kind- 
est acts your parents can do for you if 
they keep you from the corrupting even- 
ing, streets. You ought to find the sweet- 
est place on earth at home, where mother, 
brothers, sisters, books, music, and a 
thousand other pleasant things lend their 
aid to make it the most delightful place 



# 



60 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



out of heaven. In the next chapter I will 
tell you a true story showing the differ- 
ence between a street training and home 
education. 

"Home, home, sweet, sweet home, 

Be it ever so homely, there's no place like home." 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 61 



CHAPTER YT. 

True Courage — Dare to do Eight — Tempted, but Con- 
quers — The Habit of Obedience — Conversation with 
his Mother — " Old Battles" — Temperance — ^'Eum- 
struck Striker" — Miniature Ship '' William Butler" 
launched — House for Mother — ' ' My Fishing Excur- 
sion." 

True courage is a great and stLining vir- 
tue; it is greatly adraired and praised. 
But what is courage ? It is that quality 
of a person which enables, him, with a 
strong will and a calm heart, to face great 
dangers. The sailor who, in a storm, can 
with composure and a steady nerve run up 
the shrouds, lay along the yards and take 
in sail, is called a brave man. The soldier 
who, in the roar of battle and in face of 
the foe, can firmly stand at his danger- 
ous post, and resolutely obey orders at the 
peril of his life, is called a hero, and is justly 
honored. But there is a courage that is 
required in time of peace, and on land 
as well as on the stormy ocean — courage 
to do right when opposed and laughed at. 



62 PAYSONj A MODEL BOY. 

He is a brave boy, a true liero, who dares 
to do right in the face of ridicule : who is 
not ashamed of his principles, and who 
abides by them. 

Payson was very fond of skating, coast- 
ing, and swimming, and at suitable times 
and places he was fully allowed to engage 
in these healthful sports. He was not 
permitted to spend his evenings in the 
streets ; evening shows and public amuse- 
ments of a doubtful moral tendency he 
was not allowed to attend ; and after 
learning the reasons of the prohibition he 
quietly yielded obedience, and soon be- 
came able to distinguish by the show-bills 
those fit to be patronized from those of a 
low, frivolous, and degrading character. 

One day he was coasting upon a hill- 
side with his brother and sister and a 
party of boys and girls. A large boy, 
older than himself, approached him, 
saying, 

" Halloo, Payson, are you going to the 
Hall to-night to see the fun ?" 

Hand-bills had been scattered through 
the village calling the inhabitants to 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 63 

assemble and listen to songs, and witness 
performances of a character far from ele- 
vating; and learning the nature of the 
assembly he had decided not to attend, 
and he answered : 

" 'No ; I guess not." 

" Why don't you go ? we shall have 
fine times." 

" Why ? Because my father and mother 
don't think it is best that I should go." 

" Nonsense ! Tou ministers' sons are 
cowards ■ you are afraid your father'll 
whip you, or you are tied up to your 
mother's apron-strings." 

" I think you wont find us to be such 
cowards as you say we are." 

" Yes you are ; you are a coward ; you 
are afraid to go." 

Payson looked up at him with a stern 
calmness, paused a moment, and then 
said in a grave tone : 

"Yes, I am afraid to do wrong ; but 
Til stand for the right whether you do 
or not." 

And the conversation ended. Here 
was a moral victory. The boy who dares 



64 PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 

to do right is worthy of praise. It is not 
cowardice to be afraid to do wrong, and 
thus displease our Almighty Father in 
heaven. His displeasure is more to be 
feared than the frowns and ridicule of the 
whole world. Decision, and confidence 
in the wisdom and safety of right and 
duty, will save a boy from many mean 
and wicked things. 

Boys are sometimes told to do or avoid 
things by their parents and teachers for 
which they do not see the reasons ; or if 
the reasons are stated to them, the boys 
do not feel the force of them for want of 
experience. Their parents have had the 
experience and observation of many years, 
and are therefore qualified to advise and 
command; but you may always be sure 
that their advice and orders come from 
loving hearts, and you ought to obey 
them whether you know the reasons of 
their commands or not. Your confidence 
in them should be so great that you will 
cheerfully do what they bid whether you 
can appreciate the reality of the dangers 
against which they would guard you or not. 



PAYSOIS", A MODEL BOY. 65 

Late one afternoon Pay son came into 
the house, and sought his mother to make 
a request. 

" Mother, I want you to give us leave 
to go down street this evening to play 
with the boys." 

" You know we don't allow you to play 
in the streets in the evening," replied his 
mother. 

" Yes, mother, I know it ; but wont 
you please let us go to-night? James 
and David and Sammy are to be there, 
and we want to go and have a good time 
with the boys." 

" Your father and I think it is a bad 
place for boys to play at night in the 
streets. You will learn no good there." 

" But I wish you would just let us go 
this once. Nearly all the other boys play 
in the streets, and I don't see why we 
should be kept so close at home." 

His mother saw that his heart was set 
upon going, and she thought best to give 
him some reasons for the denial which 
she must give him. 

" I suppose you want to go very much ; 



66 PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 

but if you knew as well as we do the bad 
influence it will have upon you, you 
would be willing to stay at home. You 
think you would do nothing wrong ; but 
when you get out you don't know what 
company you will fall into. You will be 
tempted to swear, to use foul language, 
to drink, to gamble, and perhaps even to 
steal. You "will be under the cover of 
darkness, and perhaps, merely for fun, 
you will be led on to set some buildings 
on fire, or do some mischief w^hich will 
get you into trouble. I want you to give 
up your plan for going into the streets to 
play in the evening." 

But this did not satisfy him, and he 
said : 

" Mother, I would not be disrespectful 
to you, but I think your fears are ground- 
less ; I don't see any harm at all in going 
out to have a little sport with the boys." 

" Well," she replied, " I have given 
you my reasons. I know boys who years 
ago spent their evenings in the streets, 
hanging about taverns and stores ; by 
little and little they went into vice and 



A MODEL BOY. 67 

crime, and now they are poor, worthless 
characters, a curse to their friends and to 
society. Yon can have amusements at 
home, and I think you can be happy with 
your friends here ; but you cannot have 
our permission to go to play in the streets 
to-night. I must give you a positive 
denial." 

" Mother, I shall obey you ; I shall not 
go out ; but I can't see any really good 
reason for your being so strict." 

" Well, Payson, you may not value my 
reasons now, but if you live to be twenty- 
one years old, and I live till that time, 
you will come to me and thank me for 
keeping you out of the streets in the 
evenings, and for being just so strict with 
you as I am." 

This ended the matter. The question 
was decided, and the evenings were 
pleasantly spent at home in useful studies 
or reading, and in innocent amusements. 
There is a sequel to this scene and con- 
versation which will be found on a subse- 
quent page. The principle and the habit 
of obedience cannot be fixed in the mind 



68 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

too early in life, and it is a defense against 
a host of foes wMcli will rush in and ruin 
the soul when this protection is wanting. 
Indulgence in intoxicating drinks is a 
snare that entraps a great many boys and 
young men^ and leads them with rapid 
steps to vice and sin and ruin ; and while 
this habit is so alarmingly on the increase, 
I would caution every boy who reads this 
book to be on his guard, and obstinately 
refuse the first drink. If you have decis- 
ion enough to say no^ and stick to it^ you 
will never be harmed by drunkenness; 
but if you once begin this wicked habit 
you cannot tell where you will stop. It 
is much easier never to begin than to 
break off after the habit is formed. Per- 
haps you have heard of the brave soldier 
who had been in many engagements, had 
been wounded in various parts of his 
body, and was so covered with scars that 
his comrades called him " Old Battles." 
But though a valiant hero, he was a slave 
to drink; the habii was so strong with 
him that his greatest victory was, in his 
own opinion, the conquest, by the help of 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 69 

God, of this giant appetite. Better never 
form such a habit than to run the risk of 
being a slave to it forever, or than to 
bring upon yourself the mighty task of 
breaking its terrible chains. 

Before he was ten years old Payson 
took the pledge of abstinence from intox- 
icating drinks, and faithfully did he keep 
it. An event occurred near his home by 
the sea-shore which made a deep impres- 
sion upon his mind, and confirmed him in • 
his temperance principles ; and as he has 
left a record of it in the form of a school- 
composition, it may not be improper to 
insert it here for its moral lessons. 

''THE RUMSTEUCK STRIKER. 

" I suppose that most if not all of my 
hearers have heard of the shoemakers' 
strike at Lynn, in the year 1859. At that 
time great numbers of shoemakers flocked 
to Lynn, where they held mass meetings 
to strengthen themselves in their determ- 
ination to work no longer at the old prices. 
Among those who went to Lynn one day^ 
to attend one of these meetings were two 



70 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

young men who were cousins. The age 
of the elder of them was twenty years, 
that of the younger was seventeen. The 
day was cold and rainy. After they had 
marched about with the procession for 
some time, being cold and wet, they 
stepped into a grogshop for shelter. 
While there they were invited to take a 
glass of liquor. Neither of them had 
ever tasted liquor of any kind before, but 
they were told it would warm them up 
and do them good ; and influenced partly 
by these assurances, but far more by the 
fear of ridicule, they each drank a glass. 
In a short time they started for home, 
which was eight miles distant. They 
had not gone far before they began to 
feel the efiects of the liquor. They be- 
gan to stagger as they walked, and when 
they had gone two miles the younger of 
them fell flat in the road. His compan- 
ion, too drunk to assist him, staggered on, 
and reached home a short time before 
midnight. Search was made for his com- 
panion, but without success, until three 
days after, when his body was found in a 



71 

brickyard near the road. He had appar- 
ently endeavored to reach the shelter of 
the shed containing the kiln, but Bad be- 
come exhausted, and fallen in the mud, 
where he remained until the cold and rain 
put an end to his life. His first glass 
proved his last. Liquor killed him. As 
I looked at his body, and heard the sobs 
and groans of his father, I resolved never 
to endanger my life and reputation by 
tampering with the demon Alcohol. 
' Touch not, taste not, handle not ' any- 
thing that can intoxicate." 

Payson was deeply interested in the 
sea and the shipping, and learned to call 
the various vessels he saw by their right 
names, and to distinguish the different 
parts of the vessel and of the rigging by 
the proper title. This close observation 
so fixed the forms of objects in his mind 
that he was able to form on paper with 
his pencil very correct dravtings of them. 
From a block of pine he shaped with his 
knife a single-masted vessel, and rigged it 
completely with yards, sails, shrouds, rud- 



72 PAYSOISTj A MODEL BOY. 

der, flag, and cannon; he had it neatly 
painted, and on the stern appeared in 
good stfkpe the name Wm. Butler, for ^ 
he had learned to love and revere the 
name of that great and good missionary 
to India. It was his delight to show to 
his brothers and sisters the launching and 
sailing of his little craft, and his kind 
words to them while doing so are still re- 
membered. Putting it into the water 
with fifty feet of twine attached, he would 
sing out, " One, two, three, off she goes 
to India, to teach the people to be good. 
"With these words he pushed it out so that 
the wind would strike the sails and waft 
it across the water. 

Thus he combined innocent sport, for 
himself and others, with thought of that 
great Christian enterprise which bears 
" tidings of great joy to all people," and 
for which he cheerfully gave of his money 
to the end of life. He was happy himself 
in trying to make his young friends hap- 
py. My young reader can do the same. 
He can by kindness to the boys and girls 
of his acquaintance greatly add to th^ir 



/ 




No. 743. 



Launch of the William Butler. 



PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 75 

enjoyment in a thousand little ways of 
wliicli a kind heart will make him think. 

Payson made the acquaintance of an 
excellent gentleman of wealth who lived 
in the village, and by invitation spent 
some of his evenings at the gentleman's 

new and commodious house. Mr. 

seemed to take an interest in him, and 
related to him some particulars of his own 
history; how he commenced life a poor 
boy, and lived with his mother on short 
fare ; how by industry and economy he 
rose in the world and became prosperous. 
He had lately taken possession of his large 
new house, and in his family still lived 
his aged mother, whom he highly honored 
and tenderly cherished. These interviews 
made a strong impression upon Pay son's 
mind, which became evident in his con- 
versation and plans. One day he said to 
his mother, 

" Mother, I am going to fit myself for 
business, make money, and then you shall 
have as good a house to live in as Mr. ." 

And this was not merely a momentary 
impulse, for his subsequent course showed 



76 PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 

how fully this idea had come to occupy 
his mind. 

It is a beautiful trait of character in 
any boy to love his mother ; to form and 
carry out plans for her comfort. ]M[y 
young reader may remember how George 
Washington honored his mother, and to 
please her gave up the plan he had 
formed of going to sea, even after he had 
got his trunk packed and was all ready to 
go. Never grieve your mother's heart by 
unkindness or obstinacy ; always cheerfully 
obey her orders, for God has said, " Honor 
thy father and mother : that thy days may 
be long upon the land which the Lord 
thy God giveth thee." Never will a boy 
lose anything by a sincere and constant 
respect for his mother ; on the other hand, 
he will gain what no silver or gold can 
buy — what can be equaled by no selfish 
gratification — self-respect, the approval of 
conscience and of God. It makes him 
resemble even the Saviour of the world, 
for, when he hung in the agonies of cruci- 
fixion, he provided a home for his mother 
with the beloved John by speaking to 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. Y7 

him those memorable words, '^Behold 
thy mother l'^^ 

On one occasion he was invited to 
make one of a party to spend a day in 
deep-sea fishing. The arrangements were 
made by the excellent and lamented Eev. 
Henry E. Hempstead, at that time pastor 
of the Boston-street Church in Lynn. 
As this was one of the bright days in his 
humble life, of which he has left a written 
account, the reader may not be displeased 
to read his own description of it, which 
he afterward wrote : 

*^MY FISHING EXCURSION. 

"Although this subject has been fre- 
quently presented to you by able writers, 
yet I trust you will bear with me while 
I attempt to give an account of a fish- 
ing excursion, or rather fishing cruise, 
which I took nearly four years ago. To 
commence, then, in the usual style, by 
describing the state of the weather, it was 
a beautiful day; not a cloud was to be 
seen, and there was little or no wind. 
At a little before four o'clock my com- 



78 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

panions and myself rose and made prep- 
arations for the day's pleasure. Having 
provided ourselves with a good supply of 
lunch, we started in a wagon for the 
place of rendezvous, which was Swamp- 
scott, arriving there before sunrise. I 
might as well inform you now that the 
party with which we were going consisted 
of about twenty clergymen, one of my 
companions and myself being the only 
ones who did not place a ' E-e-v.' before 
their names. 

" The inhabitants of Swampscott, as you 
probably know, are principally engaged 
in fishing. A large number of fishing 
schooners, or jiggers, as they are called, 
was anchored in the bay, while very many 
small boats, or dories, were drawn up on 
the beach, or were darting across the 
water in every direction. 

" When the whole number of excur- 
sionists had arrived, the captain of the 
jigger in which we were to go shoved his 
dory into the water, and taking about a 
dozen persons into it, including my coui- 
panions and myself, started for his jigger, 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 79 

which was at anchor half a mile distant. 
We soon got on board, and were left to 
amuse ourselves till the rest of the party, 
and the provisions, fuel, and other stores, 
could be got on board. Procuring some 
bait of a man who was fishing alongside, 
we commenced catching small fish. When 
tired of this sport our attention was 
directed to the sun, which was rising. 
Sunrise on the ocean is one of the most 
beautiful sights in the world. As there 
was no wind, the sea was smooth as glass, 
and the sun's rays, coming to us from 
near the horizon, across the water, caused 
the ocean to look like a vast sheet of gold. 
At length, all being on board, we weighed 
anchor, hoisted the sails, and started. 
Our vessel was a saucy-looking craft, 
schooner-rigged, with a long red streamer 
flying from the masthead, and was called 
'I Tell Te.' At first our motion was 
exceedingly slow; but on getting out of 
the bay into the open sea the wind 
filled the sails and our motion was per- 
ceptibly accelerated, and we were soon 
flying along with great speed. After a 



80 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

sail of about twelve miles we dropped 
anchor and commenced fishing. Soon 
the cod and haddock began to tumble 
over the bulwarks upon the deck. I took 
position forward, near the bowsprit, but 
caught nothing except the line of a man 
who was fishing on the opposite side, 
causing him to address some rather severe 
remarks to me. I was heartily glad, I 
assure you, that a few minutes after he 
was compelled, by a certain disagi^eeable 
sensation in the region of his digestive 
organs, to seek a part of the vessel less 
afiected by the motion of the waves than 
the bow. Finding the fish did not bite, 
I began to look around and w^atch the 
sails, which were to be seen in every 
direction. Soon dinner-time came. Our 
appetites having been sharpened by the 
sea air, w^e ate wdth much relish our din- 
ner of pilot bread and fried fish. After 
dinner we moved further out to sea, and 
again commenced fishing. I was leaning 
over the rail, gazing at the ever-changing 
scene before me, holding my line, accord- 
ing to directions, so that the hook was 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 81 

six feet from the bottom, when it received 
such a sudden and powerful jerk that my 
elbows were twitched off the rail, and 
I might have fallen overboard had not a 
fi'iend caught me. Somewhat roused by 
the abrupt manner in which my enjoy- 
ment had been interrupted, I declined 
the proffered assistance of my friend, 
planted my feet firmly against the bul- 
warks and commenced pulling at the line 
with all my strength, determined that 
unless the line should break I would make 
the acquaintance of the monster at the 
other end. After much effort (I was 
smaller then than now) I brought the fish 
on board. I baited my hook and com- 
menced fishing again, but caught nothing 
during the rest of the day. 

"At three o'clock in the afternoon we 
were called to leave fishing and partake 
of some fish chowder which the cook had 
been preparing. In regard to this, I can 
only say that no one, unless he has under 
similar circumstances eaten similar food, 
can understand how good it was. After 
eating all we wished, we weighed anchor 



82 PAYSOjS", ^ MODEL BOY. 

and sailed toward land. We passed be- 
tween Nahant and Egg Kock Lighthouse, 
and then hove to, to send some of the 
party ashore through the surf of ISTahant 
beach. When the boat which put them 
ashore had returned, we continued our 
voyage until we reached our former an- 
chorage. In a short time we reached 
shore with our fish, and finding a con- 
veyance in readiness started immediately 
for home, which we reached a little after 
sunset. 

" The first thing, of course, was to as- 
certain the weight of the fish we caught. 
Mine weighed sixteen pounds. 'Next came 
supper, for which we were very ready; 
and lastly, we w^ent to bed well tired. 

"J. P. w. c:r 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 83 



CHAPTEE YII. 

At Grandfather's House — Cliaracter in School — Moral 
Struggles — Franklin's Boyhood — Diary — Moral 
Eules — Sterling Camp-meetings Dr. Kirk's Sermon 
— Tent Prayer-meeting — Great Eain — Shower of 
Grace — Conversion. 

Though a schoolboy's life may have 
in it but few startling incidents, and may 
not attract public attention, yet it affords 
ample opportunity to bring out character. 
It is there that principles are adopted 
and habits are formed which control the 
boy's future life for honesty and honor, or 
lead him down the paths of deceit and 
shame. 

Payson left his home by the sea-shore, 
and for about a year he attended school, 
living in the family of his maternal grand- 
father. He here appeared as a diligent 
and obedient scholar, and won the confi- 
dence and esteem of his teacher ; and his 
cheerful and ever ready assistance made 
him a valuable solace to his aged grand- 
parents. This was a happy year to hirn. 



84 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

and his diary, whicli lie faithfully kept, 
shows how he was employed from day to 
day, and is marked by a cheerful spirit, 
and by a determination to do his duty. 
He was in the habit of reading the Bible 
dayly, in course, and of reciting proof- 
texts in the Sunday-school on any subject 
that had been previously announced. 
This practice made him more and more 
familiar with the Scriptures, and furnished 
him with a correct code of morals by 
which to govern his life. In his inter- 
course with his school-fellows he was kind, 
courteous, and obliging ; and in his stud- 
ies it was evident that he was no shirk, 
but devoted himself faithfully to the tasks 
assigned him. How successful he was in 
one branch of study appears in the fact 
that during one term in which he was 
called to spell eight hundred words he 
misspelled but four. His avowed stand- 
ard of action was to be strictly honest and 
true in all he undertook. His written 
resolution found in his diary, entered 
when he was twelve years old, had a 
powerful influence upon him. His words 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 85 

are, ^' I now resolve to endeavor to serve 
Jesus Christ with mj whole heart." It 
Avas his evident purpose to control himself 
by the laws of right, and in his moral 
eftorts he was in a great measure success- 
ful. 

At the close of his school he left his 
grandfather's and returned to his home, 
where he remained but a few weeks, be- 
fore his father's family were removed to 
another field of labor many miles inland. 

In this place he entered the High School, 
and devoted himself to his studies and to 
the assistance of his parents in the gar- 
den and in domestic aftairs. While here 
he drew a book from the library which 
appears to have had a marked influence 
upon his mind and life, " The Boyhood of 
Great Men." His diary contains an ex- 
tract which commences : 

" In reading the boyhood of Franklin 
I find the following, which I copy for my 
own use: 'Nothing can be accomplished 
without a fixed purpose, a concentration 
of mind and energy. Whatever you at- 
tempt to do, whether it be the writing of 



86 paysojst, a model boy. 

an essay or the whittling of a stick, let it 
be done as well as yon can do it. It was 
this that made Franklin and Newton, and 
hundreds whose labors have been of incal- 
culable service to mankind. Fix your 
mind closely and intently on what you 
undertake ; in no other way can you have 
a reasonable hope of success. An energy 
that dies in a day is good for nothing ; 
an hour's fixed attention will never avail. 
The inventions that bless mankind were 
not the results of a few moments' thought 
and investigation. A lifetime has often 
been given to a single object. If you, 
then, have a desire to bless your species, 
or to get to yourself a glorious name, fix 
your mind upon something and let it rcr 
main fixed.' " 

From the time he read this book he 
seemed to have had higher aspirations, 
and to have set himself more vigorously 
about the work of self-improvement. 
This appears in his handwriting, and 
showed itself in his deportment. Among 
his papers was found a little book which 
he had prepared for his own private use, 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 87 

in which spaces are ruled off for keeping 
a strict account of himself according to 
Benjamin Franklin's rules, which are 
neatly copied out in it. There are twelve 
of these spaces, and the table is so ar- 
ranged that on each day of the week a 
minute can be made of the violation of 
the rule. 

The following are the rules : 

" 1. Temperance, Eat not to dullness ; 
drink not to elevation. 

" 2. Silence. Speak not but what may 
benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling 
conversation. 

^' 3. Order. Let all things have their 
places ; let each part of your business 
have its time. 

" 4. Resolution. Resolve to perform 
what you ought; perform without fail 
what you resolve. 

'^ 5. Frugality. Make no expense but 
to do good to others or yourself; that is, 
waste nothing. 

" 6. Industry. Lose no time ; be always 
employed in something useful ; cut off all 
unnecessary actions. 



88 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



" 7. Sincerity, Use no hurtful deceit ; 
think innocently and justly ; and, if you 
speak, speak accordingly. 

" 8. Justice. "Wrong none by injuries, 
or omitting the benefits that are your 
duty. 

" 9. Moderation, Avoid extremes ; 
forbear resenting injuries so much as you 
think they deserve. 

" 10. Cleanliness. Tolerate no nn- 
cleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation. 

"11. Tranquillity. Be not disturbed 
at trifles, or at accidents common or un- 
avoidable. 

" 12. Humility. Imitate Jesus and 
Socrates." 

It cannot be doubted that a continued 
effort to conform to these rules, main- 
tained for a long period, will greatly im- 
prove the morals and general mode of 
life. It is a course of self-culture which 
will secure valuable results, and will 
qualify a person for a high degree of 
usefulness. 

But Payson was now approaching a 
higher religious experience than he had 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 89 

ever known. He was now nearly four- 
teen years old, and, with his brother, 
looked forward with interest and pleasure 
to attending the annual meeting in the 
grove in their father's company. The 
camp-meeting was held in August, in a 
delightful grove not far from the town of 
Sterling. On Monday morning they 
packed their trunks with blankets and 
quilts, and laid in their provisions for the 
week. Hatchet, hammer, and nails they 
did not forget, as they might want to use 
them about the tent ; nor did they leave 
behind their Bibles and hymn books, for 
the great work of the week was to be the 
worship of God. They went to the grove 
by railroad, and before the sun went 
down they had secured their places in the 
tent which they were to call their home 
for a few days. About seven o'clock in 
the evening the great bell rung out 
through the trees and tents to call the 
people around the preachers' stand to 
hear the first sermon of the meeting. 
Many boys seem not to know that there 
is a wrong as well as a right way to at- 



90 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

tend a grove-meeting. The right way is 
to hear every sermon with attention ; 
faithfully to attend the tent-meetings ; 
not to neglect secret prayer, and the read- 
ing of the Bible. It is by honest and 
earnest attention to the great business of 
the meeting that people derive real bene- 
fit from these gatherings. In the shady 
grove, or nnder some spreading tree in 
the cool solitude of the forest, the devout 
mind finds a delightful spot to come to 
God, and is stirred up to this by the plain 
preaching and melodious songs in the 
great congregation. Payson seemed dis- 
posed to improve this opportunity to se- 
cure some spiritual good, and therefore he 
pursued the right way to do this. 

At ten o'clock in the evening the bell 
rings for all to retire. Quiet then pre- 
vails throughout the encampment ; from 
every tent a steady light gleams through 
the night. The sentinels pace their 
rounds to keep off intruders, and to pre- 
vent all disturbance. Lying down be- 
neath the shelter of the canvass roof, 
listening to the rustling of the leaves by 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 91 

the gentle night wind, to the occasional 
dropping of the dew, and to the chirping 
of the crickets, the devout soul is moved 
to peculiar thoughts and feelings. " I 
am here to prepare for eternity," he 
thinks, "to learn more of God and the 
way to heaven ; I am here with this great 
gathering of Christian people to seek the 
gracious influences from above, which will 
make me strong in duty and in piety." 

The weather was delightful during the 
former part of the week, and vast crowds 
of people thronged to the preaching, es- 
pecially in the afternoon. Three times 
each day there was preaching from the 
stand to the multitude, In the intervals, 
Payson, with a friend or two, often 
sought retirement in some solitary spot 
for conversation and prayer. When 
Thursday morning came the wind was 
blowing briskly through the trees, the 
leaves were " clapping their little hands 
with glee," and an occasional cloud ob- 
scured the face of the sky. The assembly 
in the forenoon was very great, to hear 
the excellent Dr. Kirk, of Boston, whose 



93 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

theme was the " Prodigal Son." It was 
a pathetic, melting discourse, just suited 
to the masses, who listened with flowing 
tears as the preacher set forth the tender, 
fatherly love of God to repenting sinners. 
In the afternoon Eev. L. E. Thayer, of 
Lowell, preached, but as the day drew to 
a close the clouds thickened and the rain 
began to fall. The tents companies kept 
under shelter during the evening, and in 
several tents sermons were preached. 
The company to which Payson belonged 
held a prayer-meeting. As the meeting 
went on the interest and the solemnity 
deepened, and all who were there seemed 
conscious of a holy influence pervading 
the company in a remarkable degree. 
One after another, each spoke or prayed, 
or joined in the sacred hymns. Every 
heart was stirred by the spirit of God; 
tears flowed freely — tears of penitence 
and holy joy. The waves of mercy and 
salvation seemed to flow over the whole 
praying circle. In the midst of these 
friends Payson arose with great modesty, 
his face beaming with joy and peace, and 



PAYSO^s", A MODEL BOY. 93 

said, " I feel that God has forgiven my 
sins, and has given me a new heart ; I 
want to be a Christian to the end of my 
life." 

In his journal he writes of this evening 
meeting, " Truly God was there, and 
strengthened me to bear my cross, and I 
was blessed in so doing." 

From his infancy he had constantly 
used his morning and evening prayers 
with apparent sincerity, was an obe- 
dient child, and very ready to perform 
the services required of him ; but now he 
had met w^ith a great change — a change 
of heart — which was evident in his sub- 
sequent life. "When questioned respect- 
ing his feelings in the tent that evening 
he replied, " I felt as if an electric shock 
had passed through me and the company, 
and I w^as happy in God." 

On his return home he united with the 
class, and though previously having no 
love for this means of grace, during the 
rest of his life he was a constant and in- 
terested attendant. The reality and per- 
manence of the change was clearly seen 



94 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



in the zest and relish with which he en- 
gaged in spiritual duties. He was hap- 
py in them, and trod the path of duty 
with a cheerful step. 

" We who in Christ believe 
That he for us hath died, 
We all his unknown peace receive, 
And feel his blood applied. 

'' His spirit which he gave 

Kow dwells in us we know ; 
The witness in ourselves we have, 
And all its fruits we show." 

During the remainder of his life at 
home he shed around him the steady light 
of love and piety, which endeared him to 
all who knew him. 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 95 



CHAPTEK VIII. 

On Leaving Home — How Boys Feel — The Proposal — 
Last United Song — Evening Interview with his Moth- 
er — Thanks her for a Former Denial — Enters the 
High School — Found Faithful — Sad News — His Sis- 
ter Emmie's Death. 

The time when a boy leaves home, when 
he goes ont of the circle where he is fully 
known and enters upon life among 
strangers, is full of intense interest to 
him. He leaves those who have loved 
him from infancy, and who look upon 
him through the medium of tenderest 
affection. Perhaps they have come to 
overlook his defects, and to magnify the 
better traits in his character. But on 
leaving home he comes in contact with 
those who will regard him more impar- 
tially, and who will judge him with 
greater severity. He goes to establish 
for himself a character among strangers ; 
the sweet and sunny influences of home 
are at a distance ; temptations will assail 
him, new associates will gather round 



96 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



him, an^ his principles will be put to the 
test. 

One boy goes from his home with 
hilarious joy, exulting that he now escapes 
from an authority that has been irksome 
to him, and he bursts with a sense of re- 
lief into a larger freedom. Forgetful of 
the love and wisdom that have hedged 
him about, and shielded him from un- 
known dangers, he gladly flies from 
home, unsuspicious of the evils that lie in 
ambush for his destruction. Another lad, 
conscious of the partiality of parental 
fondness, loving his ease and personal 
comfort, and without the laudable ambi- 
tion to accomplish something noble for 
mankind, shrinks altogether from leaving 
the home circle. 

Payson had no desire to escape from 
parental authority, yet his heart was 
stirred with a desire to earn his own liv- 
ing, and to ease, by his own exertions, 
the lot of his parents. He was now 
nearly fifteen years old, and when on a 
Fourth of July visit among his friends, 
the gentleman whose name he bore called 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 97 

to see him, and proposed to have him 
come and live with him and go to school. 
This proposal was duly considered and 
finally adopted, bnt it was several weeks 
before it was carried into effect. He 
wished to delay till after the camp-meet- 
ing, which he greatly loved. 

The last Sunday evening before leav- 
ing home all the six brothers and sisters 
were together ; they mingled their voices 
in sacred song, each of the four elder ones 
bearing a part, and all closely united in 
love and happiness. Probably no one of 
them suspected that this was the last 
gong that they would all sing together 
on earth. The circle was then com- 
plete and joyous, and the future was con- 
cealed. 

Some time before leaving home he had 
been told the course of life pursued by 
some of his acquaintances, boys that he 
had known years before. He had wanted 
to play in the streets at night with them, 
but had been denied. Now they were in 
the highway of vice, and were filling 
their parents' hearts with anxiety and 



98 PAYSOTT, A MODEL BOY, 



anguisli ; some of their acts had greatly 
astonished them. 

On the evening before he left, home 
a public meeting was held in the village 
which most of the family attended ; but, 
as his mother could not go, Payson de- 
cided to remain with her. This interview 
was one of great comfort and delight to 
both, and is looked back upon by his 
mother with peculiar pleasure, for one of 
the marked traits in his character was 
tender, self-denying love for his mother. 
This showed itself in many ways ; in 
rising early, kindling the fire, and pre- 
paring for breakfast; in his expressions 
in his letters, and in his plans for her 
future comfort. When all was quiet that 
evening he sat down near his mother 
and said : 

" I want to spend this evening with 
you, mother, as I am going off to-morrow." 

After conversing on many things he 
paused and said : 

^' Mother, you recollect when we were 

in -. I wanted to play in the streets in 

the evening, and you would not allow it. 



PAYSOJSr, A MODEL BOY. 99 

You said then if I lived till I was twenty- 
one years old I shonld come and thank 
you for keeping me in. I feel tliat I can- 
not wait till that time ; I want to thank 
you now^ for if I had gone with those 
boys as I wanted to, who knows where 
I should have been now ! I did not see 
the evil tendency of the course then, I do 
now." 

My young readers, your only safe way 
is to obey your parents, whether you can 
always see and appreciate the reasons for 
their orders or not. Keep out of the 
streets at night if you would avoid a 
"street education," and its bitter fruits 
of profanity, crime, disgrace, and ruin. 

The next morning, after bidding the 
family " Good-by," he left home and went 
to North Hampton, and became a member 
of the family of the excellent and useful 
Christian citizen after whom he was 
named. The same evening he passed an 
examination before the School Committee, 
and the following day he entered the 
High School under the instruction of Mr. 
George B. Manley. 



100 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

Here new duties and new associates 
awaited him, which called into exercise 
all his powers and very fully occupied 
his time. His efforts to serve and please 
were faithfully made, and gave satisfac- 
tion to his new friends, and he rapidly 
grew into their favor. He took a place 
in the Sunday-school and in the Church, 
and was not ashamed to be known as a 
Christian. 

It is an old maxim that '' a new broom 
sweeps clean/' and it often happens that 
a boy begins well in a new situation, and 
after a few weeks, when he gets better 
acquainted, he grows remiss, neglects his 
duties, and takes unwarrantable liberties. 
This shows a want of fixed jmnciple and 
established good habits. Many a boy 
does well for a day or a week, who in a 
month shows himself not worthy to be 
trusted; therefore, if you would form a 
good character and be always trusted 
you must uniformly do right, and be 
faithful to your duties at home, and in 
small things as well as in great. For 
our blessed Master has said, " He that la 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 101 

faithful in that which is least is faithful 
also in much; and he that is unjust in 
the least is unjust also in much.'^ Luke 
xvi, 10. Payson aimed to be faithful 
everywhere and at all times; and those 
who came to know him best, cherished 
for him the highest esteem and confi- 
dence. After he had been in his new 
place nearly two months his employer 
says: "Payson is a very good boy and 
very helpful, more so than I expected. 
He readily understands w^hat he under- 
takes, and does up his work in a business- 
like way. We all like him, and feel that 
he is a pleasant addition to our little 
family." Four months later he says, " I 
am happy to say that Payson fully sus- 
tains the good character I gave him in a 
former letter." 

' But while he was cheerfully engaged 
in his school and other duties, tidings 
came to him from home that filled his 
heart with sorrowful anxiety. His little 
sister was sick, and her recovery was 
doubtful ; the diphtheria had entered the 
home circle, and there were days and 



102 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

nights of painful watching by his father 
and mother. He longed to go home and 
help them by running on errands, and 
doing the many services which sickness 
makes necessary. But it was not thought 
best to expose him to the disease, and to 
take him out of school. Yet he longed 
to go to his sister. He writes : " I find it 
almost impossible to study since your 
letter came. I might as well be in Barre, 
for here my thoughts are somewhere else 
than on my studies." In another letter 
he says : " Let me come home imme- 
diately and help mother, who, I judge, is 
nearly worn out. If there is anything 
I can do for you, let me hear immediately 
and I will start for home. My prayers 
shall ascend constantly for Emmie's re- 
CO very." 

During the sickness of his sister he 
wrote to her a very affectionate letter ; 
but she was too feeble even to hear it 
read, and a few days after a special mes- 
senger was dispatched to bring him home. 
It was a sad journey — it was to attend his 
little sister's funeral. Before the messen- 



PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 103 



ger reached liim she had departed, and 
when he arrived he could only look upon 
her lifeless form. His first inquiry of his 
mother in private was : 

" Mother, was Emmie a Christian ?" 
She then related to him her last words 
and loving messages to her brothers and 
Bisters, and he appeared satisfied. 
7 



104 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Emmie — Learning — Penitent — Happy — Sick — Teach- 
er's Visit — Bible Stories — Presentiment — Last 
Greetings and Parting Words : " Sing to me of heaven" 
— The Last Kiss — " Kesignation," by H. W. Long- 
fellow. 

" There is a reaper whose name is Death, 

And with his sickle keen 
He reaps the bearded grain at a breath, 

And the flowers that grow between.'' 

Payson's little sister Emmie was a bright^ 
healthy girl, of a very cheerful and happy 
disposition. She was a Sunday-school 
scholar, and was always glad to meet her 
teacher and classmates. For some months 
before she was taken ill she used to go 
to her father's study on Sunday after- 
noon, after church, to read some Bible 
stories, and afterward wanted him to 
ask her questions about what she had 
read, and to explain to her the difficult 
parts. 

A few Sundays before she was taken sick 
she came with her younger brother and 
sister to the study, and asked her father 



PAYS0^^5 A MODEL BOY. 105 

to hear her recite her catechism. They 
seated themselves upon the carpet, and 
her father began with the simple ques- 
tions, " Who made you ?" " Who was the 
first man ?" and so on in course, giving 
explanations adapted to their years until 
they came to the question : 

" Who died to save lost sinners ?" 

" Jesus Christ." 

" Are you sinners ?" 

" Yes, sir." 

" What is a sinner ?" 
- " One who disobeys God." 

" Are you a sinner, Emmie ?" 

" Yes, sir, I am." 

" What sin did you ever commit ?" 

She hung down her head and the tears 
began to fall, and sadly said : 

" I have told lies." 

•'What! hsLve you told lies? That 
was very wicked. God always speaks 
the truth, he never lies; and he has 
commanded us not to tell lies; and 
he has always been very good to you, 
and you ought always to do what God 
says." 



106 PAYSON, A MODE]. BOY. 

She was very much affected and wept 
freely. Her father asked her, " What are 
you going to do about it ?" 

" I am sorry, very sorrj^" 

" Well, God is willing to forgive you if 
you are really sorry and ask his pardon 
for Jesus's sake. Jesus died on the cross 
for you and loves you truly. You may 
go alone to your room and tell your 
heavenly Father how you have sinned, 
and ask him to forgive you, for I know he 
is willing." 

She went to her chamber alone, weep- 
ing and sobbing, and there is no doubt she 
asked and received the Lord's blessing, 
for when she appeared again a pleasant 
smile was on her face, and she was calm 
and happy. 

One rainy, chilly day in early October 
Emmie returned fi'om school fatigued, 
complaining of headache, and ate but 
little. She was unable to go to school 
the next day, and as it was her little sis- 
ter's birthday, spent much of the time in 
playing with her. The day after, as the 
weather was pleasant, she went out and 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 107 



remained a short time upon the piazza, 
where she could look out upon her flower- 
bed, which she had tended with watchful 
care through the summer. She was very 
fond of flowers, and but a few weeks be- 
fore had returned from the fields and the 
grove with her hands filled with them, 
and on meeting her elder sister appeared 
very pleasant, and said to her, '' O, Mary, 
I am so happy I" 

" What makes you happy ? because you 
have so many flowers ?" 

"No, bnt because I love God." 
A few days before she was taken ill 
she had committed to memory a pretty 
hymn which she intended to sing with 
her two sisters at the concert on the fol- 
lowing Sunday, beginning 

"I want to be an angel." 

But she was too sick to go, and never 
went to Sunday-school again. One day 
in the early part of her sickness her day- 
school teacher called to see her, and spent 
half an hour by her side. It was a pre- 
cious visit to Emmie, for she tenderly loved 



108 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

her. After her teacher left, Emmie said 
to her mother, 

" I am very glad my teacher came to 
see me, for I shall never see her again." 

" O yes yoii will, for she is coming to 
teach the school another term, and if you 
are not able to go she will come and see 
yon," said her mother. 

But she quietly answered, " I shall 
never see her again." 

Before she was taken sick she delighted 
in listening to the stories from the Bible, 
and during the long tedious days of her 
sickness she often asked her father to tell 
her a Bible story. So one day he began 
the account of Joseph, whose father gave 
him a coat of many colors. In a short 
time she became weary and said, "J will 
hear more to-morrow." And for three 
successive days she called for more of the 
story of Joseph until it was finished. 
I doubt not that many of my young 
readers have been equally interested in 
hearing the wonderful narratives of the 
Bible told to them by the lips of a kind 
mother. 



A MODEL BOY. 109 

On Monday evening, October 20, while 
her mother was waiting upon her, she 
said, ''I shall never get well, mother; 
I shall die !" 

Her mother replied, " I hope not ; I 
hope you will be better." 

She answered, "I know I shall die, and 
I want to die." 

"Why do you want to die, Em- 
mie?" 

" I want to go and be with Jesus, and 
the angels in heaven." 

Her mother said, "I will now place 
you on the bed, and fix your pillows, and 
I think you will feel better." 

Later at night, while under her father's 
care, she said to him, 

" Father, I want to die ; I want to die 
right away !" 

" Why do you want to die, Emmie ? 
Do you know what it is to die? Do 
you want to go away and leave us ? We 
love you very, ve7y much." 

She replied, " I want to go to heaven, 
and live with my blessed Saviour and 
with the angels !" 



110 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

The day following, Tuesday the twenty- 
first, was to her one of great languor and 
weakness, and it was too evident that she 
was fast wearing away. 

About two o'clock in the afternoon, as 
her father stood by her bedside alone, he 
observed a change in her countenance and 
breathing, and called her mother. As she 
came to her bedside Emmie said, 

" Mother, I am dying now, and I want 
to see all the children once more." 

Her mother asked, " Are you willing 
to die, Emmie f 

She said, " Yes ; I want to die, for I 
am going to live with Jesus and the 
angels in heaven." 

The children were then called in, (ex- 
cept Payson and his eldest brother, who 
were not in town,) and turning her 
bright clear eyes upon them, and speak- 
ing in a faint, husky whisper, she reached 
out her hand to her eldest sister, and kiss- 
ing her, said, 

" Good-by, Mary ; I want you to be 
good, and I hope to meet you above." 

Then turning to her youngest sister of 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. Ill 

six years, she took her by the hand and 
kissed her, saying, 

" Abby, mind your mother; be good, 
and meet me above." 

Then she spoke to her little brother, 
taking his .hand and kissing him, and say- 
ing, 

" Be a good boy, and mind your moth- 
er ; I want to meet you above." 

She was then asked if she had anything 
to say to her absent brothers ; and she 
said, 

" Tell Willie I give him my love and 
kiss, and I want to meet him in heaven. 
Give my love and kiss to Payson ; tell him 
to be good, for I want to meet him in 
heaven." 

She then kissed Mrs. B., a kind neigh- 
bor, and thanked her for her care, and 
sent a message to another absent friend, 
Miss H. At this moment the physician 
came in, and she said to him, 

" I am dying, doctor ; I thank you for 
all your kindness to me ; I want to kiss 
you, and I want to meet you above." 

She then kissed him, stretching up her 



112 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

arms to embrace him. She kissed her 
father and mother, saying, " I shall meet 
you in heaven." She then said, " I want 
you to sing." 

Her father asked, " What shall we 
sing ?" 

" Anything you please." 

" We don't feel as if we could sing," 
said he. 

Turning to the physician she said, 
" Doctor, can't you sing ?" He said he 
could not. She then turned to her moth- 
er and said, '^ Sing 

" ' I want to be an angel.' " 

The first verse of the hymn was sung 
with flowing tears, and then she said, 
" That will do." 

Soon after, as her younger sister was 
crying near her, she said, " Abby, don't 
cry ; be a good girl and meet me above." 

She said to her mother, " I want you 
to make a mound over my grave next 
summer and have it filled with flowers." 

After resting a short time she called 
for some of her treasures and toys ; pres- 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 113 

ents that liad been given to her, which she 
highly valued, and with deliberation and 
good judgment proceeded to give them 
away, some article to each one of the 
family. To Payson she gave her ring, 
ominous, it may be, of that blessed eter- 
nity he was soon, and first of the family 
circle, to share with her. After thus dis- 
posing of her affairs she rested a while 
and appeared to sleep. 

About five o'clock she said, 

" Mother, I am dying very fast now ;'' 
and turning to her father she added, " I 
wish you would sing to me." 

" What shall we sing, Emmie ?" said he. 

She whispered out in reply, with an air 
and earnestness never to be forgotten, 

* ' sing to me of heaven 

When I am called to die ; 
Sing songs of holy ecstasy, 

To waft my soul on high." 

Some one sought the book for the 
words, but she said, " Sing it right away." 
The first verse, with the chorus, was sung 
before the book was brought, and she 
said, " That is enough." 



114 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

As her mother stood by her weeping, 
she said, "Don't cry, mother; I shall 
meet yon in heaven." 

At a later hour she bade the family 
good-by again, and said, "Give my love 
to Grandpa and Grandma L., and to 
Grandma 0." Her utterance then became 
indistinct. 

Between six and seven in the evening 
her eldest brother arrived from H., and 
her mother endeavored to arouse her to 
see him. At length she opened her 
filmy eyes, but did not speak ; she raised 
her hands slightly and put up her lips 
to kiss him. It was the last kiss she 
gave. 

About ten o'clock in the evening, after 
a few gasps for breath, "her spirit re- 
turned to God who gave it." Emmie 
slept in Jesus, aged seven years, ten 
months, and sixteen days. 

I shall close this chapter with one of 
the sweetest poems in the English lan- 
guage to bleeding parental hearts, for 
which multitudes of sorrowing ones will 
bless the gifted author : 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 115 



RESIGNATION. 

BY H. TV. LONGFELLOW. 

There is no flock however watched and tended 

But one dead lamb is there ; 
There is no fireside howsoe'er defended 

But has one vacant chair. 

The air is full of farewells to the dying, 

And mournings for the dead ; 
The heart of Eachel for her children crying 

Will not be comforted. 

Let us be patient ! These severe afflictions 

Not from the ground arise ; 
But oftentimes celestial benedictions 

Assume this dark disguise. 

We see but dimly through the mists and vapors, 

Amid these earthly damps. 
What seem to us but sad funereal tapers 

May be heaven's distant lamps. 

There is no death ! What seems so is transition. 

This life of mortal breath 
Is but a suburb of the life Elysian, 

Whose portal we call death. 

She is not dead — the child of our affection, 

But gone unto that school 
Where she no longer needs our poor protection, 

And Christ himself doth rule. 

In that great Cloister's stillness and seclusion, 

By guardian angels led, 
Safe from temptation, safe from sin's pollution, 

She lives whom we call dead. 



116 PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 

Day after day vre think wliat she is doing 

In those bright realms of air ; 
Year after year her tender steps pursuing, 

Behold her grown more fair. 

Thus do we walk with her, and keep unbroken 

The bond which nature gives ; 
Thinking that our remembrance, though unspoken. 

May reach her where she lives. 

Not as a child shall we again behold her. 

For when with raptures wild 
In our embraces we again enfold her 

She will not be a child : 

But a fair maiden m her Father's mansion^ 

Clothed with celestial grace. 
And beautiful with all the soul's expansion, 

Shall we behold her face. 

And though at times, impetuous with emotion 

And anguish long suppressed. 
The swelling heart heaves moaning like the ocean, 

That cannot be at rest, 

We will be patient, and assuage the feeling 

We may not wholly stay ; 
By silence sanctifying, not concealing 

The grief that must have way. 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 117 



CHAPTER X. 

Days of Sorrow — Boys, write Home — An Amusing 
Xietter — "Descending the Hill of Science" — Advice 
about Composition and Declamation — School Speech- 
es — "Perseverance" — "Punctuality" — "Hazel 
Eyes," by H. J. A. 

The days that follow bereavement are 
sad and thoughtful. The mind involun- 
tarily runs back upon the past, and rec- 
ollections of the sayings and doings of 
the lost one throng upon the memory. 
The feelings are tender, and the eyes are 
often moistened with tears, and often the 
dreams of the night take their hue from 
the recent sorrow. But toil and duty, as 
well as time, temper grief, otherwise the 
burden might crush us. It is not a cul- 
pable forgetting of the dead faithfully to 
perform duties to the living. The neces- 
sity of exertion is one of God's modes of 
consoling the mourner. So Payson re- 
turned from the obsequies of his sister to 
the duties of his situation and to his stud- 
ies, made sadder and wiser by his grief. 



118 PAYSON, A MODEL BOT. 



Most of his letters were written to the 
dear ones in the home circle. Boys ab- 
sent from home should never forget their 
duty to write often to their parents, 
brothers, and sisters. Their letters can 
nowhere receive a warmer welcome than 
in the domestic group. The effect upon 
the writer is also salutary and sacred. 
When a boy grows unmindful and indif- 
ferent toward his home, and seldom writes 
to his mother, who loves him with undying 
affection, be sure something is going 
wrong with him. He has fallen into bad 
company, or has yielded to temptation. 
As long as there is free and confidential 
communication between a boy and his 
mother there is strong hope of good for 
him. The feelings of Payson, on receiv- 
ing letters from home, he expresses by a 
quotation sent by him in a letter to his 
parents : 

" A letter from home ! would I were there, 

With the group in the parlor hall, 
Where the firelight gleams on the cottage floor, 

And anon on the cottage wall. 
There's a vacant chair at the hearth and board, 

And a voice they were wont to hear ; 



PAYSO^^j A MODEL BOY. 119 

And I am not there when the night-time comes 
To join in their joyful cheer." 

Whether your lot be cast in the city or in 
the country, in the army or on the ocean, 
never forget, my boy, to write often to your 
mother and to the loving ones at home. 

At one period in his life, when at 
school away from home, he lived near the 
foot of a long hill, and the school-house 
was at the summit, so that on his return 
from school in winter he would often slide 
on his sled quite to the door of his board- 
ing-place. While here he wrote many 
letters. An extract may be in place to 
show his turn of mind when about thir- 
teen years old. 

To one acquaintance, who had sent 
him an amusing letter with a rude draw- 
ing of a flag, he writes : 

" I received your letter to-day, and was 
very glad to hear from you. From the 
looks of your efforts in the artistic line I 
think that you belong to the class of ar- 
tists who ' are born, not made.' If you 
mean to leave the Union [as the style of 
8 



120 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

tlie flag miglit indicate] I will never lend 
a hand to help yon raise a three-striped 
flag, bnt will stick to the flag with thir- 
teen stripes and thirty-three stars. Your 
stripes alone are rather evident signs of 
flogging. 

" I have more sport in descending this 
' Hill of Science ' to supper than in ascend- 
ing it to school. I wish that you would 
remember that wisdom and knowledge 
are two different and distinct things. I 
am getting an education, that when I am 
grown I may be a man, and not (as Dea- 
con W. says) a big boy. I have made an 
answer to your question. I have not a 
crow-bar in my neck, and as there are 
joints in it, I might lower my head a very 
little to gratify you. ... 

" Living as you do with a minister, a 
housekeeper, a poetess, a musician, a 
commodore, a milliner, and a sewing ma- 
chine, I think it will be your own fault 
if you do not improve rapidly in the 
branches taught by them. I don't know 
of much else to write, and close, hoping to 
see you." .... 



PAYSO^^, A MODEL BOY. 121 

By many boys the school exercises of 
declamation and composition are very 
much dreaded, and as often as possible 
avoided; bat every teacher knows that 
they are of very great utility. I suppose 
the reason why these exercises are so 
much disliked, is because they demand 
close attention and persevering applica- 
tion to secure success. There is labor in 
writing a composition, and in committing 
to memory a piece for declamation; 
but if you resolutely set about the 
task, and patiently persevere in it, you 
will succeed ; and in the success you 
will find ample compensation for all your 
toil. 

Payson took more pleasure in declama- 
tion than in composition, but he faithfully 
endeavored to fulfill his duties in both 
departments. 

He threw his energies into the pieces 
he spoke, and by voice, articulation, and 
action sought and acquired the pleased 
attention of the school and the approba- 
tion of his teachers. His selections were 
sometimes mirthful and humorous, some- 



122 PAYSO^^, A MODEL BOY. 

times earnest and tragic, and were well 
committed. In the last school he at- 
tended, as in the preceding ones, he won 
an honorable position as a speaker. 
Among his favorite pieces for declama- 
tion were the " Antiquity of Freedom," 
" Speeches of Spartacus to the Gladia- 
tors and to the Roman Envoys," " Mr. 
Pepperage's Oration," ^'Whittling," by" 
Pierpont, " Seventh Plague of Egypt," 
and " Parrhasius." This last was his 
latest exercise of this kind in school, and 
the impressive pathos with which he ut- 
tered its closing lines are still remembered 
by his schoolmates. 

" If beyond 

The grave there is no heaven in whose wide air 

The spirit may find room, and in the love 

Of whose bright habitants the lavish heart 

May spend itself, what thrice mocked fools are we I" 

It was difficult for Payson to write 
compositions, but he forced himself to the 
duty, and his patient efforts to excel in 
it were not without satisfactory results. 
There is a moral quality in two of his 
compositions which may justify their in- 
sertion here, and it may be safely said 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 123 

that they also illustrate some prominent 
traits in his own character. One is en- 
titled 

«' PERSEYEKANCE. 

" Much has been said and written on 
the subject of perseYcrance. There are 
few who are not convinced of its value, 
yet very many, perhaps most men, do not 
possess this attainment. 

" Perseverance may be defined as Hhe 
steady pursuance of any design or course 
commenced.' I think, however, that the 
Indian's definition of the word is full as 
good, and expressed in more simple lan- 
guage. When asked what perseverance 
meant, he said, ' Perseverance is to take 
right hold and to TiolcL right on^ and never 
let go? That is genuine perseverance ; it 
will do anything that can be done. With- 
out this trait of character no one can suc- 
ceed fully in any undertaking. He will 
be disheartened by every little obstacle 
with which he meets. Instead of con- 
quering difficulties he will be overcome 
by them. No one has ever attained to 



124 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

positions of honor and responsibility with- 
out perseverance. The lives of all our 
great men prove this to be true — Benja- 
min Franklin, at first the son of a poor 
tallow-chandler and soap-boiler, a print- 
er's apprentice, but afterward one of the 
wisest philosophers and most prudent 
statesmen of his time; Nathaniel P. 
Banks, once a bobbin-boy in a cotton fac- 
tory, afterward governor of his native 
state, now a major-general ; Daniel Web- 
ster, whose name as a statesman and ora- 
tor will live forever. All these men are 
striking examples of what persever- 
ance can accomplish. With the excep- 
tion of Daniel Webster these men had 
no extraordinary talents; they became 
what they were only by persevering in- 
dustry. 

"When Sir Isaac Newton was asked 
how he made his discoveries, he answered, 
' By always thinking about them ;' and 
at another time he said, ' If I have done 
anything, it is due to nothing but indus- 
try and patient thought. I keep the sub- 
ject of my inquiry constantly before my 



PAYSOJNT, A MODEL BOY. 125 

mind, and wait till the first dawning opens 
gradually, little by little, into a full and 
clear light.' 

" School is a good place to cultivate 
and strengthen the habits of perseverance. 
The habits we form here will go Vv^ith us 
through life. We shall be very likely to 
meet obstacles hereafter in the same man- 
ner as we meet difficulties in our lessons 
now. 

" In addition to the usefulness of this 
habit, there is a real enjoyment in con- 
quering a hard lesson which alone, in my 
estimation, repays one for his labor. 
Buxton uses very strong language in re- 
gard to perseverance. He says, ' The 
longer I live the more I am certain that 
the great difference between men, between 
the feeble and the powerful, is energy — 
invincible determination — a purpose once 
fixed, and then death or victory. That 
quality will do anything that can be 
done in this world ; and no talents, no 
opportunities, no circumstances will 
make a two-legged creature a man with- 
out it.' " 



126 FAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

The other is on 

" PUNCTUALITY. 

"Of the many traits of character that 
make one a pleasant companion, a reliable 
friend, and a successful business man, 
punctuality is one that deserves attention, 
and in too many cases needs cultivation. 

" Punctuality means exactness in any 
respect ; but the word is most frequently 
employed to denote exactness in regard 
to time. To be a pleasant companion one 
must be punctual. It is very annoying to 
be obliged to wait for a person after the 
time agreed upon for meeting. 

"If one would succeed in business he 
must be punctual. Men have frequently 
met w^ith great losses, not only of time, 
but also of money, because of the un- 
punctuality of themselves or others. The 
habit of punctuality enables men to per- 
form a greater amount of labor than they 
otherwise could. It was by the aid of 
this habit that the great merchant, Sam- 
uel Budgett, transacted such a vast 
amount of business successfully. TJn- 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 127 

punctuality indicates negligence and care- 
lessness in all respects. One who is al- 
ways behind time is generally behind in 
other things. Men experienced in busi- 
ness prefer to have as few dealings as 
possible with such a person. George 
Washington was a very punctual man. 
He once agreed to meet a man at a cer- 
tain time to look at a pair of horses which 
he intended to purchase. At the ap- 
pointed time General Washington was 
there. Ten minutes after the time this 
man arrived with his horses, and was not 
a little surprised to find that Washington 
had left. Thus by his tardiness he lost 
an opportunity of selling his horses. 

" John Q. Adams affords an example of 
wonderful punctuality. His punctuality 
on all occasions was so great that it was 
noticed by all. At one time, while he 
was a member of one of the Houses of 
Congress, the president was about to com- 
mence the session, when one of the mem- 
bers objected, saying it was not yet time. 
When the president called attention to 
the clock in confirmation of his opinion, 



128 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

the member replied that Mr. Adams was 
not in his seat, and therefore he was con- 
fident the time had not yet arrived. The 
president waited till Mr. Adams came, 
and then opened the session. It v^^as 
afterward found that on that dav the 
clock w^as three minutes fast. The habit 
of punctuality should be cultivated by all. 
Like all other good habits, however, it can 
only be formed by persevering exertions." 

As a member of the High School in 
N., Payson won the confidence and re- 
spect of the scholars and teachers. His 
courtesy and obliging conduct toward his 
schoolmates, his genial good-nature and 
respectable standing as a scholar, secured 
for him their hearty esteem and good-will. 
They loved him and trusted him. 

In the month of May a poem was read 
in the school by one of the scholars, from 
which the following passages are extracted 
as illustrative of the estimation in which 
he was held, though at the time lie was 
ignorant of their application. It is en- 
titled 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 129 

''HAZEL EYES." 
* * * * * 

" In the far depths of earnest ' Hazel Eyes' 
An unexplored domain of beauty lies ; 
Through those clear windows of the soul I look, 
And read that spirit like an open book. 
***** 

The title of this book's first page is truth ; 
Spare that, Time ! when thou removest youth ; 
That when the gray locks sweep a wrinkled brow, 
The soul within may be as pure as now. 

" Next, ' love of learning.' May it never be 
Thy lot to learn the power of misery ; 
To study guilt ; to reach through ways of sin 
The untold anguish of the ' might have been ;' 
To look far backward out of hopeless pain. 
Feeling that living has been worse than vain. 
There's our great lesson, learning's alphabet, 
I hope you will learn, if you have not yet — 
The fear of God — that when through weary strife 
You go to learn the task of human life, 
You may be taught the one thing simply vast, 
Which leads to learning's sum and source at last. 

"Ambition, Hope, the next two pages show; 
A right ambition, and a bright hope now ; 
But guard with jealous vigilance the first 
Lest it usurp dominion ; for the worst 
Of masters will the best of servants be. 
Unchained ambition wraps insanity 
Around the brain, and sets the pulse on fire, 
And thrills the spirit with intense desire 
For worldly honor ; which, if thou shalt gain, 
'Twill pierce thy brpw, a triple crown of pain. 



130 PAYSOIT, A MODEL BOY. 

" Then Love, then Honor — many pages more 
"Which I have not now time to mention o'er; 
But this was read, once when the sunlight shone 
Full in those eyes, just as they met my own ; 
This is not half of what was then revealed, 
And many pages of this book are sealed. 

*' Two faces meet in my waking dreams : 
One, out of midnight on the desert gleams, 
A once fair forehead, darkened by despair, 
With white threads gleaming in the soft black hair, • 
"With lips made rigid by unuttered sighs. 
And hopeless anguish in the ' Hazel Eyes.* 

" An old man, bent in form, with staff in hand, 
Stands by that river which divides the land 
Our souls are seeking from this vale of tears. 
The waves are dark, but to the old man's ears 
Comes now the answer of a life desire : 
* Well done thou faithful servant, come up higher V 
The noble forehead bears no trace of guile. 
The calm lips part now in a holy smile : 
Farewell to disappointment, sorrow, sighs. 
For heaven itself beams in those ' Hazel Eyes.' 

'' Which of these faces will my schoolmate claim 
When years have brought their glory or their shame ? 
•0 not the first one ! yet if this must be. 
The wreck of ruined promise hide from me 1 
For come what will come, I desire to keep 
One picture in the soul's art-gallery deep — 
A portrait never changed in any wise 
Of that young schoolmate with the 'Hazel Eyes.'" 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 131 



CHAPTER XI. 

** Too old to go to Sunday-school !" — Letter to a Young 
Convert — Thanks for Good Advice, Asks for More^ 
Letter to a Christian Lady — When will the War End ? 
Joins the Church — Mound and Flowers on Emmie's 
Grave — Boys in School observed by Business Men — 
Engagement as Clerk — Anticipations of a Home 
Visit — Last Letter Home. 

There is a time somewhere between 
the ages of fifteen and twenty years when 
some boys think that they are too old to 
go to Sunday-school. It is very well, 
they imagine, for younger boys and girls- 
to go ; but they themselves have grown 
older and larger, and they are apt to 
think that it compromises their dignity 
and freedom to remain Sunday-school 
scholars. Now they wish to " put away 
childish things," and they reckon the 
Sunday-school among them. But this 
ideaj though common, is not wise ; for it 
is not merely the duty and privilege of 
the child to study God's word, but it es- 
pecially becomes the young man who is 



132 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

just reaching the most perilous passages 
of the voyage of life. The pilot who 
guides the ship through Long Island 
Sound to the port of New York must not 
dismiss his care and watchfulness till 
after he passes the boiling whirlpool of 
Hell Gate ; but it would be quite as wise 
for him to do so as for the young man to 
abandon his Sunday-school. Just then, 
when new and strange influences and as- 
sociations crowd around him, not all of 
which are pure and healthful, does he need 
the counsels and sympathies of the Sun- 
day-school. He does need to pass into 
more advanced classes, to receive the 
attention of qualified teachers, and to 
study text-books adapted to his age, for 
the ocean of divine truth meets the ne- 
cessities of all ages. Here, indeed, " the 
little child may wade, and the elephant 
may swim," but the older boy or young 
m.an does not well or wisely to leave the 
Sunday-school. 

Payson retained his love for the lessons 
and the associations of the Sunday-school. 
The lessons interested him, and he 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 133 



cherished a sincere regard for his teachers, 
as every scholar should for those who 
devote time, study, and talents for his 
welfare, without fee or reward. He con- 
tinued faithful in his attendance at the 
prayer-meetings and at the class-meet- 
ings, for which he was richly compensated 
by the sacred, moral, and spiritual 
• thoughts and feelings thus inspired and 
fostered in his soul. 

Good news reached him from home, to 
which allusion is made in the following 
letter, written in February, 1863 : 

" My deak Sister, — Your kind letter 
of the 2Tth ultimo was duly received, 
and gladdened my heart as it has never 
been before on receiving a letter from 
you. ... 

" I am exceeding glad to learn that you 
are trying to live a Christian life. I had 
rather know that you are a sincere Chris- 
tian than to hear anything else, however 
excellent, concerning you. You request 
me to pray for* you. Be assured that I 
will pray for you most earnestly ; but O ! 



134: PAYSON, A MODEL BOY 



do not neglect to pray for youf self. Don't 
content yourself witli merely saying your 
prayers, but go to Jesus, your best friend, 
and simply tell him wliat you want, ask 
him for what you need, and at the same 
time believe that you receive what you 
need. Don't be disappointed if you re- 
ceive an answer in a different manner 
from what you expected, or if you do not 
receive it as soon as you expected. Con- 
tinue to ask and to expect an answer till 
it comes. And now you are trying to 
serve Christ, don't think that you will 
have an easy time. You must strive 
against your evil inclinations, and you 
will find this hard work. But if you are 
faithful in your endeavors, and trust al- 
ways in Jesus, he will never forsake you, 
but will ever prove a faithful friend. 
Don't be discouraged when you make 
failures, but be persevering. I advise 
you, when you can, to go to class-meeting, 
for you will find it a great help. Don't 
try to live a Christian and let no one 
know it, for if you do you will almost 
certainly fail. I wish to hear from you 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 135 

frequently on this most important sub- 
ject. ... 

" Asking your earnest prayers for my- 
self as well as yourself, I am truly yours, 

" Payson." 

It was very evident to those who knew 
Payson most intimately that with him re- 
ligion was not a mxere matter of form or 
of speculation. One who has often met 
him in the class-meeting, and observed 
his developing character, remembers well 
with what cheerfulness, fervor, and mod- 
esty he closed at one meeting the relation 
of his experience by saying, " I want to be 
more like Jesus." 

In the month of February his parents 
made him a short visit. They found him 
diligently engaged in the duties of the 
school, and making himself useful in the 
family where he lived. The instructions 
of parents are not all forgotten ; often- 
times they seem to be of little effect for a 
time, even as the seed sown in the soil 
makes no show for many days ; but sun- 
light, warmth, and moisture at length bring 



136 PAYSOlSr, A MODEL BOY. 

the springing blades to light. So often 
some advice given may seem to be of no 
real use while the boy remains in tho 
quiet of home, but when he goes forth 
from the domestic roof to other scenes 
and associates he remembers the forgot- 
ten counsels as the time comes demand- 
ing their practice; happy is he if he 
regards them. 

" Father," said Payson, " I feel very 
thankful to you for the cautions and ad- 
vices you gave me concerning a pure and 
chaste mind and conduct. I have occa- 
sion to value them, and they have been 
my defense. I have been thinking of late 
that it is my duty to join the Chui'ch. 
There are some things about the Lord's 
supper which I do not understand ; I wish 
you would explain them to me." 

The time did not then admit of much 
conversation ; but after a few words the 
father promised to instruct him more fully 
at a more suitable time, which was done 
by letter and at length. This advice was 
thoroughly studied, and in a few weeks he 
united in full membership with the Church. 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 137 



About this time he wrote to a Christian 
lady in B. who had taken much interest 
in his spiritual welfare, and as it shows 
his views and feelings at the time we 
make some extracts from it : 

NoETH Hampton, March^ 1868. 

"Dear Sister in Christ, — Your 
kind letter of the 17th inst. was received 
on the 19th. I was very much pleased, I 
assure you, to receiv^e a letter so full of 
sympathy and good advice as was yours. 
Though I ha\'e good and kind friends 
here, I desire to be remembered by your- 
self and all my other Iriends in B. 

'^ I can sincerely join with you in hop- 
ing that this war may soon come to a 
close, and that a peace may be established 
that will be permanent. But since all 
things are in the hands of a just God, I 
do not think that peace will be restored 
until all men are considered as free and 
equal by our government. I do not 
think that God would have permitted this 
war to come upon us but for some great 
and wise purpose ; and when this purpose 



138 PAYsox, A :model boy. 

has been accomplished, and not till then, 
shall we become again a happy and united 
people. . . . 

"Sunday^ March 29. This morning I 
was received into the Methodist Chnrch 
in this place. I feel that now, more than 
ever before, I am closely connected with 
the cause of my Eedeemer ; that his glory 
is to be the great object of my life, and 
the governing principle of my actions. I 
deeply feel the great responsibilities I 
have taken upon myself by this act, and 
I am also deeply sensible of my own great 
nnworthiness to be called by the name of 
Christian. But I have the blessed assur- 
ance that the grace of God is sufficient to 
keep me from sin and transgression. 
With the aid of my divine master I will 
still persevere in the way of life. I ask 
an interest in your prayers. I especially 
need to watch against temptation, and 
to exercise patience toward my associates. 

" Please give my regards to all inquir- 
ing friends. I shall be very glad to hear 
from you again. I am sincerely yours, 
" J. P. W. Clark." 



PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 139 

Among the other tasks of love which 
he took upon himself was the adorning 
of his sister's grave with flowers, and 
in one of his letters he thus alludes to 
her : 

''I have made a mound on Emmie's 
grave. I can never feel that Emmie is 
here; she is in a better, holier place, 
where pain and sickness are un- 
known. God grant we may all meet 
her there !" 

It was during the spring term that 
Pajson was solicited to become a clerk. 
Several of the business firms in the town 
were desirous of obtaining young men for 
their service, and they made application 
to the teacher of the High School to rec- 
ommend to them some of the scholars 
whose proficiency in study and general 
good conduct were such as to make them 
reliable and useful. The teacher made a 
list of several names that he could rec- 
ommend for situations, and Payson's was 
first- on the list. 

School-boys are apt to forget how 
closely they are observed in their conduct 



140 PAYSO^^, A MODEL BOY. 

in school, not only by their teachers, but 
also by men of business. These gentle- 
men have occasion contmually to employ 
others in various parts of their business, 
and they are on the lookout for trust- 
worthy boys and young men. They care 
not so much for the wealth of the boy's 
father as they do for honesty and up- 
rightness of character. Character is ev- 
erything ; a good character is of more 
vahie to a boy than a fortune. It will 
qualify him for situations, and lead him 
to positions which mere wealth can by no 
means secure for him. Let a boy be 
honest, truthful, studious, and his true 
qualities will be known and his services 
demanded. 

After having declined, with the ap- 
proval of his best friends, several applica- 
tions that were made for his services, a 
proposal came to Payson from the officers 
of the N. Bank. This was duly consid- 
ered, and after consulting with his friends 
an engagement was made. He was to 
enter upon his new situation on the first 
of July, about a fortnight after the close 



A 3I0DEL BOY. 141 

of the school terra. This would afford 
him time to make a short visit to his 
friends at home. 

It was doubtful if his health was suf- 
ficiently firm successfully to pursue a 
course of college study, though he had 
sometimes cherished this idea. When 
asked if he did not think it his duty to 
prepare for the Christian ministry, he 
said he had "no convictions of duty 
that way ; but he thought that the 
world needed Christian business men 
as well as ministers, and he thought 
many men could do more good with 
their money than they could as min- 
isters." 

This question decided, he continued his 
school studies with close application. 
The future to him was as full of radiance 
as the present was of duty faithfully per- 
formed. He was growing in stature, in 
wisdom, and in favor with God and man. 
He writes to his parents with great cheer- 
fulness, and says of his prospects, " I am 
glad of the opportunity, for it looks now 
as if I was about to commence to earn 



142 

money, instead of being entirely depend- 
ent on others." 

His generous nature and filial love is 
made very evident in the fact that he 
saved the earnings made by small jobs, 
and by voluntary labors on holidays; and 
making an ingenious " currency holder," 
he remitted it by mail to his mother, 
lined with about the value of five 
dollars. 

In another letter to his mother he 
says : 

" I vras very sorry to learn in your let- 
ter of father's illness. I cannot help feel- 
ing that you need one of us boys to help 
you. If at any time you need help, write 
and say so. Interrupting my studies is 
of no consequence compared with your 
comfort. Write soon and let me know if 
you want me at home." 

After his engagement at the bank was 
arranged he wrote mirthfully to her: 
" Don't be discouraged, mother ; your 
new house may be along yet, one of these 
days." 

Later he writes to his mother : 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 143 

"Deacon W. consents to my making yon 
a visit at the close of this term. I am now 
looking eagerly forward to the time 
when, three weeks more of school having 
been spent, I shall, Providence permit- 
ting, see once more the dear home 
laces. • • • 

"I hope to hear from yon soon. I had 
many things to write, but I will not with 
ink and pen write nnto you. But I trust 
I shall shortly see you, and we shall speak 
face to face. Peace be to you. Our 
friends salute you. Greet the friends by 
name. " Your affectionate son." 

While he was indulging these pleasing 
hopes of a return to the family group, 
some in the home circle counted with 
nervous excitement the days to the time 
of the expected meeting. Prayers, too, 
went up from childish lips, " Bless 
Brother Payson and bring him safe 
home." 

Sunday, the seventh of June, was a day 
of peculiar interest to him. His diary 
contains the following entry : 



IM PAYSON5 A MODEL BOY. 

'' This morning, at the M. E. Church in 
l^orth Plampton, partook of the Lord's 
supper for the first time. God grant that 
it may be for my eternal good, and not 
a second crucifixion of my blessed Saviour 
Jesus Christ !" 

" W. was received into the Church this 
morning, and also partook of the Lord's 
supper." 

This was not an observance to which 
he came thoughtlessly. He had made the 
subject and his duty a distinct matter of 
earnest study and of prayer for months, 
and it was a service which he performed 
in sincere and humble obedience to the 
Lord Jesus Christ. 

On the eleventh of June he writes to 
his father : 

'' . . . I am counting the days which 
will elapse before I see you. I hope that 
no insurmountable obstacle will prevent 
your coming. How I want to see you 
all ! Love to all." 

As this chapter closes the rainbow of 
hope overspans the subject of our story, 
and crowns with its radiance the circle of 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 145 

his friends. Flowers seem scattered 
along their path, and fruits, too, seem 
hanging almost within reach, fragrant 
and luscious, like those of paradise. 



146 PATSON, A MODEL BOY, 



CHAPTER XII. 

Flowery Prospects — Eural Town — Parsonage Scene — 
Death Message — Who ? — A Sad Eide— " It is Pay- 
son!"— Fatal Bath — Mr. G. B. Manley's Letter — 
Light in Darkness. 

June is the montli of roses, of the bright 
springing grass, of the luxuriant foliage 
of the trees. The heavens are bright, and 
the winds come laden with fragrance 
from field and forest. The little brooks 
leap down the hillsides with liveliest bab- 
ble, and mingle their glittering silver 
with the shining green of the mosses and 
grasses that attend and adorn their merry 
path. The birds are brimful of melody 
and song, and pour it forth on the tremu- 
lous air, and all nature conspires to make 
earth an Eden of delight. What a de- 
lightful season for a journey overland, 
over the hills and along the valleys, 
through the woods, shady and fra- 
grant with the sweet fern and the blos- 
soming grape ; over the meadows brill- 
iant as a rainbow with flowers of varied 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 147 

hue, and redolent with, the aroma of 
clover ! 

In full view from Mount Holyoke's 
summit, and lovingly embraced by the 
broad white arms of the Connecticut, lies 
in beauty the ancient rural town of North 
Hampton. The old elms, whose rugged 
trunks tell of years and wintry storms, 
whose long sweeping branches are newly 
clad in the softest and most brilliant 
green, stand as faithful guardians along 
the streets, overshadowing walk and 
dwelling. Towering above their lofty 
heads of green luxuriance and beauty, 
rise the spires of the churches, where the 
pious and benevolent descendants of a 
sainted and patriotic ancestry worship the 
God of their fathers. The faithful mill- 
stream walks and leaps through the town, 
treading, with playful feet, the revolving 
steps the miller has placed in their path, 
grinding the bread of the sons, as ages ago 
it ground the food of their sires ; and then 
glides away with a song to laugh and 
sport with the flowers of the meadows 
below. Now the gardens, under the 



148 PAYSONj A MODEL BOY. 

hand of industry and taste, and fertilized 
by the culture of two hundred years, dis- 
play their wealth of beauty, and fortell 
the coming fruits. The busy merchants, 
along their time-honored row of stores 
display their goods and ply their trade. 
Stretching down to the river's brink thou- 
sands of acres of fertile meadow teem with 
the springing crops, tilled by a free, vir- 
tuous, and intelligent yeomanry, and 
annually j^ielding a bountiful harvest — as 
beautiful to the eye as welcome to the 
garner. West of the Court-house rises 
Kound Hill, crowned wdth a line of state- 
ly mansions, overlooking the tow^n, and 
defended on the west by a flourishing, 
grove of forest trees. Further aw^ay to 
the south stands out, conspicuous and 
vast, the Hospital of the Insane, occupied, 
alas! by hundreds of suffering fellow- 
creatures. The schools are marked for 
their excellence, and the cemetery has its 
sacred charms ; here the 

" Kude forefathers of the hamlet sleep," 

Each in his dusty bed; here, side by 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 149 

side, slumber the generations of the 
past. 

The fertilizing mists which each sum- 
mer morning brings from the river give a 
beautiful life and freshness to vegation 
along its banks, which the loftier lands 
do not display. 

The school term was near its close, and 
Payson's parents were about to visit this 
delightful village, and convey him to 
their home. 

Let us look in for a moment upon 
their home. On the 15th of June, in 
that little parsonage in B., so elevated as 
to command a prospect over hills and 
valleys, groves and villages for twelve 
miles away, and limited by the blue sum- 
mit of Wachusett, were gathered half a 
dozen friendly neighbors, to enjoy con- 
verse with their pastor's family. The sun 
had gone down, and a mellow twilight 
hung over the hills. The time speeds on 
and the social hour brings the friends into 
closer sympathy. The next day the jour- 
ney is to be made which brings the dear 
one home* Of this kindly words were 



150 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

spoken, plans completed, and arrange- 
ments fully made. The children are 
asleep, and the hour of nine draws nigh. 

But hark! the door-bell rings. It is 
answered. The messenger asks : 

"Does Mr. C. live here?" 

" That is my name." 

" I have a telegraphic despatch for 
you," said he presenting it. 

It is superscribed '^ Death Message." 
It is opened, and the words are read : 

" North Hampton, June 15. 

" Tour son was drowned this after- 
noon. Come as soon as possible." 

Could it be Payson? or was it hi& 
brother ? for both were in N. 

The message was borne to the mother, 
who was yet conversing in the friendly 
circle, with the remark, 

" Here is heavy news for you ; you 
must look to God for support." 

Over that night of suspense and agony 
hangs the mantel of silence which no 
stranger, no friend, none but the initiated 
can ever withdraw. Jesus, the divine 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. iSl 

supporter and comforter, was wittin. 
Let that suffice. ; ' 

Early the next morning, while the' -Mn 
was slowly ascending above the hills, -4 
sorrowful family were journeying witl. 
impatient haste to the scene of grief -and 
beauty — nature was beautiful, but he^ts 
were sad. At the expiration of six houTS 
the family reached the river that bounde 
the town on the east, and while crosfcg 
the bridge met the older brother, when 
the little ones screamed out, \dil-. 

^'O it is Payson! it is Payson!" 3J^ 
til that moment they knew not whiek 
brother was drowned. t ■: 

They hastened on until the carriag<^ 
stopped at the residence of Mr. W., whose 
wail of agony, as he aided the griefr 
stricken mother to alight, 'iH:l 

'' could not be suppressed." - - -^ 

There, amid tears and sobs, and the sad 
voices of sorrowing friends, . newspaper 
records told the story to aching hearts all 
too full and true. Under this roof lay itibe 
lifeless form of " Our Payson." Uoq 

10 



152 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

It was ascertained by inquiry that for a 
week previous he had complained to his 
elder brother of dullness and pain in his 
head, and of the uncommon difficulty he 
had in mastering his lessons. He had 
mentioned the same fact to some of his 
schoolmates. On Monday noon, as he 
was starting for the school-room, he 
plucked a pink and a rose-bud and pre- 
sented them to his brother, at the same 
time saying, " O how my head aches !" 
After the close of school in the afternoon 
he returned to the house and asked per- 
mission to go and bathe with his school- 
mates. It was granted, and he rejoined 
them on their way to Damon's mill-pond. 
As they were going he said to one of his 
companions, "I have only three more 
Latin lessons to get before the term closes, 
and I am glad of it, for I am about tired 
out; then I shall go home and have a 
good long rest." On going into the wa- 
ter he told his mates, who proj)osed to 
swim across the pond, that he did not 
feel very well, and he should not accom- 
pany them, but stay near the shore. 



^^/'^.\^4.^. 




No. 743. 



Payson's Death. 



PAYSOX, A MODEL BOY. 155 

They then struck out for the opposite 
bank, and he for a nearer point on the 
dam. • They shouted to him, " Good-by, 
John," and he cheerfully responded 
"good-by." He reached the dam, and 
rested some forty or fifty feet from the 
shore. He soon started to swim back, 
but had proceeded only a few yards when 
he was seen struggling, and called, with a 
smile on his face, for help ; but his com- 
rades were too far from him to help him, 
though some smaller boys were nearer 
him on the shore. He sunk in some 
eighteen feet of water and rose no more. 
The alarm was given ; his comrades quick- 
ly reached the spot and dove for him, but 
could not find him. The mill-gate was 
shut down ; the community was aroused, 
and many rushed to the pond. Half a 
dozen skillful swimmers began to dive 
for him ; but the water was so deep and 
cold it was impossible to go to the bot- 
tom. The pond was then dragged with 
grappling-hooks, but it was impossible to 
find the body. At last, after the lapse of 
two hours and a half, the waste gate was 



156 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

raised, and in about ten minutes the body, 
with a placid smile upon his face, passed 
through, and was taken from the water 
by the loving arms of his devoted teacher. 

One of the town papers states concern- 
ing him : " He had the reputation of be- 
ing an unusually good and intelligent 
boy, possessing an amiable disposition, 
correct habits, and bright intellectual fac- 
ulties. He was highly esteemed by Mr. 
J. P. Williston and family, his teachers 
and playmates, and all who knew him. 
As a scholar he was not excelled in our 
town school by those of his own age, and 
equaled by few if any." 

Another of the town papers says : " He 
was a lad of fine promise, and his sudden 
and distressing death casts a gloom over 
our whole community. Though called 
away so suddenly and so early in life, he 
had secured 'the one thing needful.' 
He was a worthy member of the Method- 
ist Church. To know him was to love 
him. We have received the following 
tribute to the character of the deceased 
from one who knew and appreciated him : 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 157 

" 'NoKTH Hampton High School, June 16, 1863. 

"^Mr. Editor, — You chronicle to-day 
an event that brings affliction to many 
hearts. To me this is the saddest hour of 
all my life as a teacher. My noble boy, 
my beautiful boy, the boy upon whom 
neither teacher nor schoolmate ever 
looked but with honegt pride and affec- 
tion; the boy against whom no whisper 
was ever heard, but all his schoolmates 
testified that he ^' never did anything 
wrong ;" the boy whom none ever envied 
the honors he bore so modestly, but all 
acknowledged them fully merited, and 
rejoiced in them even as though they had 
been their own — this lovely and beloved 
boy is taken from us. He went out yes- 
terday" at the close of school full of phys- 
ical life as of nobleness of soul, and in 
scarce half an hour his body lay lifeless at 
the bottom of the stream where he was 
bathing with his companions. So sudden- 
ly has the stroke come upon us, and it 
overwhelms us with sadness. Less than 
sixteen years of age, he possessed matur- 
ity of judgment beyond many men. His 



158 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

intellect was of a superior order, master- 
ing with completeness whatever he under- 
took, and he had a remarkable power of 
expressing in the clearest language what- 
ever he had learned. Yet his great 
beauty was in the perfectness of his moral 
and Christian character. His truthfulness 
was beyond suspicion even in the mi- 
nutest particular. He was looked up to 
involuntarily by all his schoolmates as a 
model of a noble, earnest Christian youth 
in the school-room, on the play -ground, 
everywhere. For me he was a staff upon 
which I could rely, and I have long been 
conscious that his silent influence in the 
school was an invaluable aid to me in 
maintaining its discipline and efliciency. 
I loved him as a son, or rather as a 
younger brother, for I never had occasion 
to exercise over him the authority of a 
father. What he was to his parents, and 
to the family of our esteemed fellow-citi- 
zen whose name he bore, and who had 
taken him under his care, I can w^ell im- 
agine ; and in their loss I can deeply 
sympathize. I have no fear that the un- 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 159 

qualified praise of these few liasty senten- 
ces, the outpouring of a full heart, will 
cause a thought of jealousy to any of 
his young^companions. They will unan- 
imously accord it as only the just due of 
John Payson "Williston Clark. 

"'G. B. Manley, 
" ' Principal HigJi SchooV " 

How often, my young readers, do the 
fairest prospects, all dewy and glowing 
with the morning's sunlight, change to 
the fading twilight of evening, to the 
murky gloom of night ! The grave would 
be hopelessly dark were there no light 
beyond. But Jesus, the Son of God, has 
brought life and immortality to light in 
his blessed Gospel. Even this sudden 
blasting of earthly hopes may be the 
equally sudden blooming of eternal and 
unfading joys in heaven; for Payson's 
Master has assured his disciples, ^' In my 
Father's house are many mansions. I go 
to prepare a place for you. I will come 
again and receive you to myself, that 
where I am there ye may be also." 



160 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 



CHAPTEK XIII.^ 

jy^ji.o^ Sorrow — Scene in the Sciiool-room — Poem, 
" In Memoriam,'^ by H. J. A. — Obsequies — Address 
of Eev. Dr. Eddy — " Buried in Flowers." 

O^ that Wednesday morning the sky was 
draped with clouds. Early in the day a 
fe^ scattering raindrops fell into Payson^s 
opt^Dr grave; but the air was fresh and 
^al^iy, and laden with the fragrance of 
YP^s^ There were many heavy eyes and 
heiayier hearts in the school -room, and in 
]^T>y a private dwelling, for to-day the 
^rowped school-boy was to be buried. In 
.^|jei|fchool-room the "corner-seat" was 
V[ia,OCCupied ; on the desk before it lay a 
i^T^ath and fresh bouquet of flowers, to- 
'^^^ of love, memory, grief. It was the 
d^y, for declamations and compositions; 
l>\it he was not there ; yet his presence 
lulled the room, and all those yoimg 
h^^ts thought of him and^ lovingly cher- 
i^ejd his memory. The writer of " Ha- 
zel Eyes " was there, and as her exercise 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 161 

read the following poem, just before the 
school moved to the chmxh for the burial 
service. 

"IN MEMOKIAM."- 

The comer-seat is empty, and the light 

Is gone forever from the "Hazel Eyes." 
All suddenly our hope went out in night 

Blacker than Egypt's heaven-cursed midnight skies. 
They said that night, " There is sad news for you !" 

My first thought was, " My little sister's dead." 
" One of the school-hoys has been drowned !" " O 
who ?" 

And yet I knew before his name they said ; 
I knew it by the paralyzing fear 

That stopped a moment voice and pulse and breath. 
"Why was it one to all our hearts so dear ? ■ 

How couldst thou take our glory-crown, O Death? 
You will not call me bold nor personal now 

If I should tell you that I paced the floor 
With step unsteady, and with throbbing brow. 

Whispering, "Pead, dead, dead for evermore!" 
Worn out with previous watching, when at last 

Tired nature sunk in momentary sleep, 
Such dreams of him before my vision passed. 

It was relief to wake, though but to weep. 
If I should tell you that before the dawn. 

Under the arch of heaven, I sought relief, 
Though songs of birds, and glory-bringing mom, 

Added intenser agony to grief. 
You'll not pronounce me now unmaidenly. 

You all share with me in the mournful pride 
Of cherishing that sainted memory. 

Of loving one whom death hath glorified. 



162 payso:n"5 a model boy. 

By right of soul he was my brother ; mine 

By all the claims which such rare natures have 
On all around them ; claims almost divine ! 

Mine by a common hope beyond the grave. 
Not mine, but ours. This may a blessing be 

To careless hearts if rightly understood, 
For we who bear the name of Christ can see 

That all things work together for our good. 

He needs no praise of mine ; you knew his worth. 

He fills in every heart the holiest place. 
"We might have known he was too pure for earth, 

For not one fault in him could any trace. 
Gentle, yet firm as adamant in the right, 

Modest and meek, though wise beyond his years ; 
His face with deep, calm pleasure always bright ; 

A sweeter voice ne'er fell on huma-n ears. 
"We weep for him ; we have a right to weep, 

Since Jesus wept when Lazarus was dead. 
Yet not for him but for ourselves ; his sleep 

Is peaceful, and the soul to heaven has fled. 
'Twere selfish now to wish him back in life, 

Which is but to prepare for that to come. 
Early he conquered in this sinful strife. 

And being perfect, Jesus took him Home. 
Farewell to noble brow, and soft black hair. 

And gentle lips, and glory-flooded eyes ! 
Where is his equal ? Echo answers " Where ?" 

For him hov/ glad would some have been to die 1 
The dear old school-house is a living tomb ; 

A charnel house where all our dead hopes lie : 
O God ! send light into the chilling gloom. 

And teach us how to live and how to die I 
Help us to follow in his steps, as he 

Followed undeviatingly the truth ; 
That a band unbroken we at last may be 

Upon the mountains of eternal youth. 



A MODEL BOY.. 163 

We know not who is next to follow Mm ; 

But we shall keep his face, his heavenly smile, 
His clear deep eyes, till ours in death are dim. 

Life can detain us but a little while ; 
A link in heaven binds us now together. 

Help us, God ! We need help every one. 
We go to bury him — his body rather ; 

Help us to say, " Thy will, not mine, be done." 

H. J. A. 

No'rth Hampton, Mass., June 16, 1863. 

Meanwhile the family friends had gath- 
ered at the residence of Mr. W., where 
the remains were lying, and where prayer 
was offered. On the way to the church 
his Sunday-school classmates, with each a 
rosebud in the buttonhole of his coat, in 
imitation of the custom of their departed 
friend, and bearing a bunch of flowers, 
preceded the body. Scholars from the 
High School, with each a bouquet, fol- 
lowed in procession to the First Church, 
where some twelve hundred persons, a 
large portion of whom were from the 
schools, were assembled to witness the ob- 
sequies. The services were solemn and 
impressive, and were conducted by Rev. 
Dr. Eddy, the pastor, and by Rev. Mr. 
Andrews, of the Methodist Church. The 



164 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY, 



latter offered prayer, and gave a brief ac- 
count of the religious experience of the 
deceased ; and Dr. Eddy delivered the im- 
pressive discourse which follows : 

ADDRESS 

AT THE FUNEEAL OF J. P. WILLISTON CLAEK, 
Drowned June 15, 1863. 

BY EEY. Z. EDDY, D.D. 

This is a great mourning. Though 
the youth whose remains repose in that 
coffin was a schoolboy of less than sixteen 
years, and almost a stranger among us, 
his untimely death is lamented by all 
classes of this community as a sore afflic- 
tion. Gray-haired men have wept aloud 
on hearing the mournful tidings that he 
was no more. Persons who did not know 
him by siglit have been unable to speak 
his name except with quivering lips and 
moistened eyes. The school-room where 
he was wont to sit has resounded with 
sobs and wailings. Probably no event of 
late years has drawn forth an expression 
of sorrow so general and profound. Cer- 
tainly this is quite extraordinary. 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 165 

The circumstances attending the death 
of our young friend account in part for 
the sensation which it has caused. A 
company of school-boys, full of life and 
joy, go forth to a secluded spot, where 
high banks and luxuriant foliage vail the 
deep and glassy stream from public view. 
Under the blue summer sky, while birds 
warble around them, and the June 
zephyrs whisper through the overhanging 
trees, they disrobe, and with merry shouts 
and peals of laughter plunge into the 
deep still pool. They rise to the surface 
radiant' and smiling ; they strike out 
boldly and gracefully from the shore ; they 
exult in their conscious mastery over the 
strange and treacherous element; they 
abandon themselves to the wildly-delicious 
excitement of the sport ; the heavens and 
the earth seem to laugh with them in their 
hilarity. "What have they to do with 
death ? It is whole millenniums distant. 

Suddenly there is a cry of agony. • One 
of the company throws up his arms in 
distress, struggles a moment, and sinks. 
His companions, younger than himself, do 



166 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

wliat tliey can to rescue him. "Where the 
fatal bubbles appear on the surface some 
of them bravely dive, but fail to reach the 
bottom ; others give the alarm ; many 
rush to the spot and explore the narrow 
pool, but in vain ; he cannot be found ; 
it was not to be, for God had hidden the 
drowning boy. "While an excited and 
sorrowing crowd are above the water, 
dare we descend in imagination to the 
fair youth who lies alone and helpless be- 
low? What were the thoughts which 
flashed like lightning through his mind 
during those few moments? The phys- 
ical pain, as there is reason to believe, 
was but momentary; but thought was 
strangely clear, vivid, comprehensive. 
Judging from the testimony of others 
who have been resuscitated after drown- 
ing, we cannot doubt that he saw at a 
glance his whole life, not as a succession 
of events, but as a whole made up of co- 
existent parts. The images of parents, 
brothers, sisters, friends, teachers, school- 
mates were all present to his conscious- 
ness. In spirit he bade them all a loving 



PAYSOiS', A MODEL BOY. • 167 

farewell. God and heaven opened to liis 
view. Jesus was with him, and I dare 
testify that his cold and lonely dying bed 

*' Was soft as downy pillows are." 

Angels were with him in the mortal ag- 
ony. Who shall say that he was not con- 
scious of their presence ? Let not the 
sneering Sadducee approach a scene like 
this ; let him not freeze the hearts of 
mourners by the suggestions of doubt 
touching the faithful promises of God. 
Our Lord has promised to conie for his 
people and take them to himself. The 
angels who carried Lazarus to Abraham's 
bosom watch over dying believers, and 
sometimes show themselves this side the 
vail. This beloved and saintly youth 
was not without friends and sympathy in 
what appears to us the sad isolation of his 
dying moments. ISo ; there was One 
with him dearer even than father and 
mother, dearer than those other parents 
whom he had already learned to regard 
with reverent, filial affection. Let us be- 
lieve and be comforted. He lay as on a 



168 PAYSOIS-, A MODEL BOY. 

bed of roses. You know that his face 
after he was taken from that fearful 
stream was that of one who had fallen 
into a deep and placid sleep. Well and 
tenderly was he cared for in his last mo- 
ments. For one, when I looked on that 
serene and lovely face I could not help 
whispering to myself, 

" Nothing of him that doth fade ! 
He hath passed, by a sea-change, 
Into something rich and strange !" 

All this, however, is matter of faith. 
Alas, those who loved him as if he were 
the very light of their eyes, though some 
of them were within a few feet of him 
while life was ebbing away, could not see 
him, could not whisper a loving farewell 
in his ears, could not press his hand or 
kiss his brow. When at length his loved 
form was restored to them it was cold and 
pulseless. He heard not the wail of sor- 
row that broke forth over his bier. He 
felt not the tender hands that pressed his 
brow. It all seems very sad, very mourn- 
ful. Cut off so suddenly in the rich 
bloom and promise of early youth, it is 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 169 

indeed, in its outward aspect, a mournful 
event. Tet these circumstances do not 
fully account for the heartfelt lamenta- 
tions over this beloved youth which wo 
have heard on every side. 

The persuasion is general in this com- 
munity, a persuasion that has not grown 
up since his death, that Paysoit Willis- 
TO^N" Clark was a youth of remarkable 
character and promise. Though he had 
resided but a few months in this town he 
had an established reputation, not only in 
school and in the narrow circle of his per- 
sonal friends, but among experienced and 
sagacious men of business. His future 
career was already marked out. Strange 
as it may seem, he had been already se- 
lected by one of your leading manufac- 
turers as his future partner, on whom he 
intended to lean in his old age. Strange, 
I call it, as the world goes. For this boy 
of sixteen had no hereditary wealth — he 
was the son of a poor rural pastor — his 
only capital was his character. He had 
enjoyed no extraordinary advantages of 
education, and no influential connections 
11 



170 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. . 

had smootlied liis way to success and pros- 
perity. Something there was in him 
which made all distrust impossible. His 
plan of life seemed already settled, his 
fortune already made. I have never hap- 
pened to know a case like this. He was 
modest and unpretending. He seemed 
utterly unconscious of any superiority to 
others ; and though he was much honored 
at school, maintaining there the first place 
both for scholarship and deportment, not 
one of his schoolmates seemed to regard 
him with envy or ill-will ; on the contra- 
ry, all without exception were proud of 
his high standing, and generously endeav- 
ored to keep it unquestioned and unques- 
tionahle. He bore every honor meekly, 
was always ready to assist and encourage 
his fellow-pupils, and would have evi- 
dently rejoiced if they had all stood on a 
level with himself. He was frank, mirth- 
ful, fond of boyish sports, and full of vi- 
vacity. The feeling toward him among 
his youthful, associates was much warmer 
than mere esteem ; it was that of cordial, 
confining friendship. 



PAYSOXj A MODEL BOY. 171 

What then were the qualities which 
won the unfaltering confidence of all who 
knew him ? The answer doubtless is that 
he made the impression on all that he was 
governed by moral and religious princi- 
ples which were absolutely fixed and im- 
movable. He had no vice. He had 
no bad habit. His character, so far as his 
familiar friends could judge, was without 
stain. It was a saying among his compan- 
ions, that Payson Clark could not be 
tempted *to do wrong. He himself indeed 
acknowledged his sinfulness, and the 
struggles he had with evil tendencies. 
He was humble in the sight of God and 
men. 

One of the most striking and lovely 
traits of his character was unswerving 
veracity. He scorned not only prevar- 
ication but concealment. Other pupils 
might render imperfect and false reports 
in respect to recitations and deportment ; 
but he strictly noted every one of his 
failures, however venial, and assured him- 
self that the record was true to the letter. 
Even when excuses were suggested by his 



172 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

teacher, lie refused to avail liimself of 
tliem. He was determined to appear 
what be knew himself to be; not only at 
school, but in every place and under all 
circumstances. This perfect truthfulness 
is much rarer, especially among the young, 
than we are apt to think. It is a virtue 
which is very much the result of long and 
careful self-culture. Payson was honest 
as well as truthful. He could be trusted 
with the interests of others. Those who 
employed him in any business, whether 
important or trivial, knew that it would 
not miscarry through any negligence or 
unscrupulousness of his. When engaged 
in manual labor, from which he did not 
shrink, he was thorough, diligent, and 
cheerful. He made himself useful in 
small matters. He was a help and com- 
fort at home, anticipating the wants and 
sharing the cares of the household. He 
w^as uniformly affectionate, respectful, 
amiable in his intercourse with the fami- 
ly of which he was a member. Previous 
to his death, one who knew him better 
than any other, except perhaps his natu- 



PAYSON, A MODEL -BOY. 173 

ral parents, said to me, " Payson is the 
best young man I ever knew." 

Pardon me for falling into tliis strain of 
eulogy. I do so not for the sake of the 
dead but of the living. I am saying 
what all these youthful hearers wish to 
have said. Besides, I would demonstrate 
to them that those of us who are older 
feel the deepest interest in the young. 
Our eyes and our hearts are upon them. 
We look with loving admiration on per- 
sons of their age who are clad in the 
white linen of spotless purity and right- 
eousness, We discern in many of you so 
much virtue, honor, and moral loveliness, 
that our hearts go forth to you in love and 
benediction. And if I now eulogize your 
departed friend and companion, it is be- 
cause I love the qualities which many of 
you in some degree possess, and to incite 
you to the cultivation of them. 

But it remains to add another remark 
on the character of the beloved youth 
who is gone from us. When I heard the 
news that he was drowned, I hastened to 
the scene of the sad event. One of his 



174 PAYSOlSr, A MODEL BOY. 



schoolfellows, much younger than he, 
walkhig at my side, said in a subdued 
voice, "^ Payson was a Christian !" Yes, 
that was understood by all his associates ; 
he was a Christian. He made no secret 
of the fact that he w^as a follower of 
Christ. He was a consistent and earnest 
naember of the Church. He loved the 
house of God, the prayer-meeting, the 
Sabbath-school, the Bible, the Church; 
more than all, he loved his Saviour, and 
humbly endeavored to do his will. Hence 
the firmness and power of his moral prin- 
ciples. Hence his strength to resist 
temptation. Hence his spotless life. He 
left no dying testimony. It was not 
needed. His pure and beautiful life was 
a stronger assurance of the genuineness of 
his piety than we could derive from the 
most triumphant expressions of hope in 
death. 

He is gone ; but though he died so 
young, we feel that he had fulfilled his 
course. We have in him as complete and 
beautiful a life as we can hope to see in 
this world. He seems to have been sent 



PAYSO:^', A MODEL BOY. 175 

among us to illustrate tlie loveliness and 
excellence of youthful piety and virtue. 
His fair and symmetrical character re- 
minds us that such a youth as Jesus of 
IS^azareth once lived in this world, and 
proves the possibility of being like him. 

His sun has gone down even in the 
hour of its rising; but how sweet and 
lovely the auroral splendor which yet 
lingers in the sky ! His memory will long 
survive, like the soft effulgence of the 
summer twilight. 

He is gone from us ; you will soon fol- 
low all that remains of him to the ceme- 
tery ; you will cover his grave with 
flowers, and you will water those flowers 
with your tears ; but you will not fail to 
ask yourselves, while performing these 
beautiful offices of affection and sorrow, 
Where now is he whose loss we deplore ? 
I think you know how to answer the 
question prompted by grief. Our young 
friend is not dead. He is living on amid 
scenes fairer than any on earth, a larger, 
holier, more blessed life. He walks, 
white-robed and crowned, in the paradise 



176 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

of God. Angels and blessed saints are 
Ills companions. There flowers never 
wither; life never decays; youth never 
fades. There he bathes in the River of 
Life ; there he quafis the waters of im- 
mortality. He has seen the face of his 
King and Saviour. Tie was early ripe for 
heaven, and needed not the scorching 
suns of midsummer to mature his Chris- 
tian graces. Even at sixteen he comes to 
his grave in a full age, like as a shock of 
corn cometh in its season. 

Shall we wish him back ? His has been 
a peaceful and happy life ; shall we mourn 
that he has been saved from the joke and 
the burdens which manhood never fails to 
bring with it? Happy youth, to have 
reached the goal almost before the race 
was begun ! Happy- youth, to have 
passed in thy bloom to a world where age 
and sorrow and death never come ! Go^ 
in thy purity, freshness, and joy ; mingle 
with the shining ones ; approa€h the 
throne ; strike thy new-found harp, strung 
for endless years, to the praise of him 
who prayed, "Father, I will that they 



177 

also whom thou hast given me 'be 
with me where I am, that they may be- 
hold my glory which thou hast given 
me." 

What now shall I say to you his youth- 
ful friends, his schoolmates and compan- 
ions? Need I say a word? He being 
dead yet speaketh. I seem to hear him 
calling to you in a voice laden with love, 
^'Weep not for me, but weep for your- 
selves. I have fought my way through ; 
I am at rest. But you are in the midst of 
the battle ; you are in peril. Follow me, 
for I have followed Christ. Delay not to 
make Christ your Saviour and your friend. 
There is but a step between you and 
death. Prepare to-day for that change 
w^hich I have left behind me forever. 
Prepare to meet me amid these scenes of 
peace and joy." 

You will perhaps sing in connection 
with these obsequies the touching lines, 

*' There^s a light in the window for thee, brother." 

Methinks your loved friend in the pal- 
ace of the great King is holding out a 



178 PAYS0^^5 A 3I0DEL BOY. 

light to guide you thither. O walk in the 
way marked by his beautiful life. 

From the church the procession of sor- 
rowful young hearts slowly moved to the 
cemetery. It is an ancient and sacred 
inclosure, and holds the dust of thousands ; 
it is densely shaded with evergreen trees, 
and richly carpeted with rank grass, 
adorned with roses and flowers, all in the 
gorgeous luxuriance of June. While 
gathered around Payson's last resting- 
place, by the side of the mound of flowers 
which his own hand had raised over his 
sister Emmie's grave, the school joined in 
singing the hymn, 

" There's a light in the window for thee, brother," 

with sobs and sighs and tears that could 
not be suppressed. After a few words 
from Mr. Andrews, his pastor, and the 
ofiering of prayer, the scholars filed by the 
grave, and each dropping a bouquet of 
flowers, nearly covered the casket with 
these symbols of love. And dear Payson 
was buried. 



4 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 1Y9 



CHAPTER XIY. 

Close of the School Term at Payson's Grave — Ad- 
dress of the Teacher — '' Eesolutions " — The Vacant 
'•Corner-seat" — Traits of Character — Eoommate's 
Letter from the Army — M. L. W. — No true Life lost 
— " Do you Eemember ?" by L. C, June 15, 1864. 

There yet remain for a concluding chap- 
ter a few facts concerning the subject of 
this narrative which ought not to be 
omitted. On Monday he was drowned, 
on Friday of the same week the term of 
the school ended, and by a common im- 
pulse the teachers and scholars chose to 
observe the closing ceremonies at Payson's 
grave. Between four and five o'clock on 
that Friday afternoon they quietly pro- 
ceeded to the cemetery, half a mile distant 
from the school-room, and stood in close 
circle around the newly-made mound cov- 
ering a beloved one of their number. 
The principal then addressed the scholars; 
but few others were present. 

He reminded them that hitherto he had 
made no efibrt to impress upon them the 



180 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

Bpiritiial lessons which, the sad event con- 
veyed ; he had left them to their silent 
reflections and to what they had heard 
from others; but now he wished to ad- 
dress to them a few parting words of 
spiritual comisel. ''You loved Payson ; 
you buried him with flowers; and now 
you have come to crown his grave with 
flowers. It is fitting that you should do 
so. These flowers are a type of the purity 
of his life, their fragrance a type of his 
love ; but they inadequately represent 
him. It needs the bended grain to do 
that, for his was a fruitful life, fruitful in 
good deeds. He was a conscientious 
Christian ; he was conscientious in his 
studies, as these resolutions show, written 
only for his own eye at the beginning of 
the term. I will read them as they ap- 
peared in his own handwriting: 

'^ ' Last term, from negligence in the 
matter of deportment, my rank fell far 
below perfection ; my incorrect deport- 
ment necessarily prevented me from pros- 
ecuting my studies with as* much faithful- 
ness and attention as I should. Therefore, 



PAYSOIS", A MODEL BOY. 181 

knowing it is my duty to improve to the 
utmost all my opportanities for gaining 
knowledge, and that a special persevering 
effort is necessary if I would do this, I 
now resolve that during this term I will 
faithfully endeavor, 

" ' First, To observe strictly and consci- 
entiously every rule relating to the gov- 
ernment of the school ; that is, to be 
perfect in deportment. 

" 'Second, To faithfully employ all my 
time in school in study ; to waste no time ; 
to make it a point to understand my les- 
sons as perfectly as my time for prepara- 
tion will allow before going to recitation. 

" 'Finally, To be ^' diligent in business, 
fervent in spirit, serving the Lord." 

"'As proof of my intention to keep 
these resolutions-, I now sign my name.' " 

The principal then remarked " that in 
the preamble Payson speaks of his pre- 
vious defects as the occasion of his low 
rank, yet the rank fell only a few num- 
bers short of perfection ; for the first half 
of the current term only two below. 
How this deficiency was caused I did not 



182 PAYSOI^, A MODEL BOY. 

know at the time ; but I learned after- 
ward. At an exciting debate on the ques- 
tion of card-playing, Payson took ground 
against it. In the heat of the discussion 
some one spoke to him, and he nodded a 
reply ; and for this only he reported him- 
self delinquent, and received two checks. 
I hold him up before you as a model ; he 
was a Christian ; this appears in the res- 
olutions, which close with the determina- 
tion to be ' diligent in business, fervent in 
spirit, serving the Lord.' 

" His rank by the record entitles him to 
the ' corner-seat ' for the next half term. 
That seat will not be occupied; it will re- 
main empty. You may crown it with 
flowers; you may wreath it with ever- 
greens ; you may do anything with it hon- 
orable to his memory; but for the next 
half term it will remain vacant." 

Prayer was then offered, and a hymn 
sung by the school, commencing, 

" A mourning school, a vacant seat." 

They then proceeded to arrange their 
offerings, and completely covered the top 



PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 183 

of the mound with fragrant and beautiful 
flowers, placing an evergreen wreath at 
the head, and a cross formed of evergreen 
and white roses at the foot.*^ The teach- 
ers then gave a grasp of the hand, and 
tender words of counsel and farewell to 
each scholar, and the summer term of the 
High School for 1863 was closed. 

It may be proper here to say that Pay- 
son read much and read thoroughly for 
one of his years. His choice was for 
solid and instructive books. He has been 
found in the study poring over " Watson's 
Institutes '' with evident interest. " Rol- 
lin's Ancient History " he had read with 
profit ; and in conversation the facts and 
incidents learned in reading were pro- 
duced by him with great appropriateness. 
One of the books which he drew latest 
from the library was " Locke on the Un- 
derstanding." He avoided what he knew 
to be romance, and often on bringing 
home a book he sought his parents' opin- 
ion as to whether it were truth or fiction. 

He was a thorough and conscientious 

* See Frontispiece. 



184: PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

scholar in tlie studies assigned him. He 
was a kind, gentle, and courteons play- 
mate, and had a regard for the rights and 
comfort of those yonnger or weaker than 
himself. He was a devout boy, reading 
his Bible with constancy every day, with 
prayer to God for his blessing and guid- 
ance. He was not ashamed of his Chris- 
tian profession or of his religious duties, 



because he believed them to be rio;ht. 



&-^ 



He was not boastful of them, but was 
ever modest and unassuming. He was of 
a cheerful spirit and enjoyed wit exceed- 
ingly. He did not take gloomy views of 
God and religion. He loved sound and 
useful knowledge, and was zealous and 
earnest in the pursuit of it. He lived be- 
loved, and he died lamented and honored 
at the early age of fifteen years and nine 
months. 

Some weeks after his decease his teach- 
er writes : " There have been at least four 
hopeful conversions among Payson's asso- 
ciates since his death. May we not be- 
lieve this the fruit of his bright, pure life, 
brought to perfection, if we may so speak, 



PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 185 

by his sad and sudden death ? How much 
the fruit of that brief life shall be One 
only knows, and the great day only shall 
reveal." 

One year after his death, in the same 
school-room where he sat and studied, a 
schoolmate read to listening ears the ap- 
pended lines, which may close this chap- 
ter and the book : 

"DO YOU REMEMBER? 

" Schoolmates, do you remember a year 
ago to-day? How little did we realize as 
we sat here on that lovely June afternoon 
that one of our number, whom we all so 
dearly loved, would never again meet 
with us here, would never again gladden 
our hearts by his joyous smile, and that 
we should never more look upon that 
calm, happy face, into the beautiful eyes, 
or hear that voice, so full of music, answer 
to the dayly report. Had we only known 
when he left us that night that it was for 
the last time, ' if we could only have 
lifted the vail, and looked a little beyond 
UDon the destiny which the next few 
12 



186 PAYSOK, A MODEL BOY. 

hours had in store for us — But no ! he 
left us full of life and joy, and ere those few 
short hours had passed the ' silver cord 
was loosed, the golden bowl broken,' and 
the brief journey of that young life ended. 

'^ No one was with him when he died, 
and only the angels in heaven watched 
the spirit go out into the night. 

"In the beautiful month of June, mid 
the blooming of roses and the soft sigh- 
ing of the wind, neath the calm, still wa- 
ters, ere night cast her dark shadows over 
earth, while the sun yet lingered to 
look upon a scene so sad, even while those 
brave boys were risking their very lives 
to save him, he who was so dear to us, 
who was the idol of so many hearts, of 
whose future so many had the highest, 
brightest hopes, the dearest, fondest 
dreams, meekly closed the soft brown 
eyes and went to sleep. 

"Do you remember how we met the 
next morning with sad faces and sadder 
hearts ? and when the clock struck nine, 
how no one came in to take the ' corner- 
seat V How deeply, sadly we felt the loss 



payso:n-, a model boy. 187 

of that dear presence, for we loved the 
lost one more than ever now. Do you 
remember the words spoken, the prayer 
uttered, the sobs and the tears shed for 
him ? Do you remember how sadly long 
was that day, and how many times we 
looked toward the corner-seat upon which 
lay flowers of the purest white, and a 
cluster of his favorite roses ? Are you 
not reminded as you look upon those 
roses now of him because they were his 
favorites? Do you remember the next 
day, after passing through those deeply sol- 
emn services, how we together followed 
all that remained of our treasure to the 
grave, and scattered flowers above the 
cold form ? Although we had looked upon 
those lifeless features, had heard the last 
prayer uttered over that open grave, had 
seen the ' dust returned to dust,' yet we 
could not make him dead. We would 
have kept him longer, would have had 
that brief journey lengthened ; but Jesus, 
who had been his guide and helper, need- 
ing him above, took him home. 

"Do you remember the long, lonely 



188 PAYSON, A MODEL BOY. 

days that followed, and at the end of the 
term how we again went together and 
decked his grave with flowers ? Do you 
remember the words spoken to us there 
by our teacher? Did we not then and 
there form many new resolutions, and 
were there not many noble resolves made ? 
How have we kept them ? Have we fol- 
lowed the example set before us by that 
pure life ? Are we any better for know- 
ing that noble heart ? Can we look back 
upon the past year satisfied ? 

" A year in heaven ! We wonder how 
he has spent that year, and if he has been 
permitted to look down upon us to watch 
our progress ! O let not the memory of 
that holy life die out from among us. 
Let it not be in vain that he came among 
us even for so short a time. Let not the 
influence we felt so strongly but one little 
year ago so soon be forgotten. But let 
us rather 

' Be up and doing 
With a heart for any fate ; 
Still achieving, still pursuing, 
Learn to labor and to wait.' '^ L. C. 
June 15, 1864. 

THE EKD. 



BOOKS FOE SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, Xew York. 



LITTLE JAMES; 

Or, the Story of a Good Boy's Life and DeatK 
John Eeinhard Hedinguer; or, the Faithful Chap- 
lain : being an Account of an Extraordinarily Pious 
and Devoted Minister of Christ. 18mo., pp. 54. 

THE CHECKERED SCENE; 

Or, Memorials of Samuel Oliver. By Eev. Geevase 
SiHTH. 18mo., pp. 168. 

THE HAPPY RESOLVE. 

A Tale from Ecal Life. 18mo., pp. 78. 

SERIOUS ADVICE 

From a Father to his Cliildren. Eecommended to 
Parents, Guardians, Governors of Seminaries, and 
to Teachers of Sunday-Schools. By Chables At- 
MOKE. 18mo., pp. 32. 

MONEY: 

Its iSTature, History, Uses, and Kesponsibilities. 
18mo., pp. 208. 

FRANK HARRISON: 

The History of a Wayward Boy. Three Illustra- 
tions. 18mo., pp. 150. 

FOOTPRINTS OF POPERY; 

Or, Places where Martyrs have Suffered. Seven 
Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 200. 

ANCIENT EGYPT: 

Its Monuments and History, Three Hlastrations. 
ISmo., pp. ^14. 

BABYLON 

And the Banks of the Euphrates. 18mo., pp. 211. 



BOOKS FOE SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, New York. 



NELLIE RUSSEL; 

Or, the Little Girl who was easily Frightened. 
Three Illustrations, 18mo. 

WHISPERS FOR BOYS 

About one of their most Deceitful EneiiLes.^ By a 
Lady. Four Illustrations. 18mo. 

AN HOUR AND A HALF 

In a Country Sunday-School. Being a P"'» \ tm of the 
Practical Working of a Successful Countr) l^'unday- 
School. Ten Illustrations. 18mo. 

ARNOLD LESLIE; 

Or, the Young Skeptic. Being the Hist»«ry of a 
Boy who Worked his Way to Honor and Competence 
through many Trials and Temptations. Wiitten by 
Himself. Five Illustrations. ISmo. 

FRANK ELSTON; 

Or, Patience in Well-doing. A Story for Lads who 
have none to depend upon but God and their own 
energies. Four Illustrations. ISmo. 

PEARLS for the LITTLE ONES. 

A Series of Stories from Child-life. By Mrs. Mart 
J^NE Phillips. Four Illustrations. ISmo 



THE YOUNG HOP-PICKERS. 

By the late Sarah Maria Fry, Author of "Mattv 
Gregg," "Margaret Craven," "The Lost Key," 
etc. Three Illustrations. ISmo. 

GEORGY LEE; 

Or, the Boy who became a Great Artist: aiicl tho 
Shadow in the House. By Mrs. 0. A. S. Bealb. 
Four niustrations. ISmc. 



»- 



8 

BOOKS FOE SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, JVew York. 



CHARLES ROUSSEL; 

Or, Industry and Honesty. Adapted from the 
Frencli of J. J. Porchat, Author of '^ Three Months 
under the Snow." By Rev. T. T. Haveufield, 
Three Illustrations. ISmo., pp. 224. 

OLD CRAG; 

Or, the Alison Family. An Authentic Tale of 
Rural and Factory Life. By a Minister. Five 
Illustrations- ISmo., pp. 216. 

RAMBLES IN THE SOUTH. 

Recollections of Rambles in the South, By Father 
William, Five Illustrations. 18mo,, pp. 196, 

GOOD HEALTH: 

The Possibility, Duty, and Means of Obtaining and 
Keeping it. ISmo,, pp. 214. 

KENNETH FORBES; 

Or, Fourteen Ways of Studying the Bible. Seven 

Illustrations. 18mo,, pp. 298, 

JAMES BAIRD: 

Or, the Basket Maker's Son, By the Author of " Fa 
ther Johnson," ^' Thoughts of Heaven," " Prince 
Family," etc. Four Illustrations. ISrao., pp. 14A, 

SWITZERLAND : 

Historical and Descriptive. ISmo., pp. 214. 

OliD EDINBURGH: 

A Historical Sketch of the Ancient Metropolis of 

Scotland. 18mo., pp. 208. 

CHILDREN OF THE BIBLE. 

Eleven Illustrations. ISmo., pp. 122. 



-a 



BOOKS rOE SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry -street, New Voik. 



LIFE OP EEV. EIOHAED WATSON, 

Author of Theological Institutes, Dictionary, Expo 
sition of the Gospels, etc. By Stephen B. W icKEKi, 
ISmo., pp. 262. 

PAEIS: ANCIENT AND MODEEN. 

18mo., pp. 212. 

THEEE MONTHS UNDEE THE SNOW. 

The Journal of a Young Inhabitant of the Jura. 
Translated from the French of J, J. Pokchat. 

Eour Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 178. 

SEinOE CLASSES Hf SUNDAT- SCHOOLS. 

Containing Cooper's Prize Essay, and other Treat- 
ises on the Subject. 18mo., pp. 203. 

OEICnr AM) PEOaEESS OP LANaUAGE. 

18mo., pp. 227. 
TEE LAMP AM) THE LANTEEU; 

Or, Light for the Tent and the Traveler. By James 
Hamilton, D.D. ISmo., pp. 202. 

LIFE or ALEXANDEE THE GEEAT. 

18mo., pp. 208. 

MT SABBATH-SOHOOL SOHOLAES. 

Eecollections of my Sabbath-School Scholars. By 
a Minister of the Gospel. ISmo., pp. 70. 

THE BIBLE IN MANY TONGUES. 

ISmo,, pp. 216. 

EEMAEKABLE ESCAPES PEOM PEEIL 

ISmo., ^p. 171. 
h— -' ^ _« 



& 

BOOKS FOB SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, Xew York 



A VOICE FEOM THE SABBATH-SOHOOL: 

A Brief Memoir of Emily Andrews. By Rev. 
Daniel Smith. 18mo., pp. 31. 

MEMOIE OF ELIZABETH JOITES, 

A little Indian Girl who lived at the Eiver-Credit 
Mission, Upper Canada. Three Illustrations. 18mo., 
pp. 72. 

TEAITS AND LEGENDS OP SHETLAND. 

Two Illustrations. 18mo., pp. T8. 

JUVEmiE TEMPEHANOE M^ZnjAL, 

And Facts for the People. By T). Goheen, Co- 
lumbia, Pa. ISmo., pp. 38. 

OAXTON AKD THE AS.T OF PEINTIUG. 

ISmo., pp. 173. 

SUPEESTITIONS OF BENGAL : 

Anecdotes of the Superstitions of Bengal, for Young 
Persons. By Egbert Newstead, Author of "Ideas 
for Infants." 18mo., pp. 52. 

OLD miMPHEEY'S FEIEimLT APPEALS. 

ISmo., pp. 232. 

QTJIET THOUGHTS FOE QUIET HOUES. 

Six Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 197. 

JESUSALEM kWD THE TEMPLE. 

Eebvilding of Jerusalem and the Temple ; or, the 
Lives of Ezra and Nehemiah. By Eev. Daitlkl 

Saiith ISmo., pp. 80. 

JANE AND HEE TEAOHEE. 

A Simple Story. 18mo., pp. 68. 
^ 8 



& ■ S! 

' BOOKS FOE SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, IVew York. 

LIFE OF JOHN BUNYAN, 

Antlior of " The Pilgrim's Progress." By Stephen 
B. WicKENs. Six lUustrations. 18mo., pp. 336. 

)L.IFE OF REV. ENOCH GEORGE, 

One of the Bishops of the M. E. Church. By Ben- 
TAMiN St. James Fry. 18mo., pp. 12i. 

\VAYSIDE FRAGMENTS; 

Or, Wonders in Common Things. Bv the Author 
of " Peeps at Nature," " Nature's Wonders," '' Vil- 
lage Science," etc. Twelve Illustrations. 18mo., 
pp. 204. 

A MEMOBIAL 

Of the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, as exhibited 
in the Life and Death of Miss Mary M'Owan. By 
her Father, Ecv. Peter M'Owan. 18mo., pp. 83. 

JOHNNY M'KAY; 

Or, the Sovereign: the Story of an Honest Boy. 
Five Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 220. 

ADDIE OAKLAND; 

Or, Charity the True Road to Happiness. Six Il- 
lustrations. 18mo., pp. 136. 

MY GRANDMAMMA GILBERT. 

By the Author of " My Grandfather Gregory." Il- 
lustrated. 18mo., pp. 139. 

TYRE: 

Its Else, Glory, and Desolation. With Notices of 
the Phoenicians generally. 18mo., pp. 214. 

THE CONVERTED JEWESS: 

A Memoir of Maria . 18mo., pp. 107. 

©_ S 



BOOKS FOR SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, New York. 

LONDON IN MODERN TIMES; 

Or. Sketches of the English Metropolis during the 
Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. 18mo., 
pp. 222. 

THE RODEN FAMILY; 

Or, the Sad End of Bad Ways. Eeminiscences of 
the West India Islands. Second Series, No. 11. 
Three Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 159. 

LEARNING- TO FEEL. 

Illustrated. Two volumes, 18mo., pp. 298. 

LEARNING TO ACT. 

Three Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 144. 

ROSA, THE "WORK GIRL. 

By the Author of " The Irish Dove." Two Illus- 
trations. ISmo., pp. 138. 

THE FIERY FURNACE; 

Or, the Story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 
By a Sunday-School Teacher. Two Illustrations. 
18mo., pp. 64. 

ELIZABETH BALES: 

A Pattern for Sunday-School Teachers and Tract 
Distributers. By J. A. James. 18mo., pp. 84u 

SOCIAL PROGRESS; 

Or, Business and Pleasure. By the Author of 
" Nature's Wonders," *' Village Science," etc. Six- 
teen Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 269. 

MINES AND MINING. 

I ISmo , pp. 212. 



BOOKS FOK SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

20O Mulberry-street, IVew York. 

THE MIRACLES OF CHRIST: 

With Explanatory Observations and 111 .istrations 
from Modern Travels. Intended for tie yoimg. 

Six Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 265. 

THE VISITOR; 

'Jr, Calls of Usefulness. Illustrated. Two volumes, 

ISmo., pp. 105, 94. 

LEARNING TO THINK. 

Illustrated. Two volumes, 18mo., pp. 135, 144. 

ONE TALENT IMiPROVED ; 

Or, the Life and Labors of Miss Susan G. Bowler, 
a Successful Sunday-School Teacher. By B. K. 
Peikce. 18mo., pp. 197. 

WE ARE SEVEN; 

Or, the Little Mourner comforted By Elizabeth 
Maria Lloyd. 18mo., pp. 51. 

THE FORTY- TWO CHILDREN 

At Mount Bethel. By a Sabbath-School Teacher. 
ISmo., pp. 47. 

SCRIPTURE CHARACTERS: 

Letters on the Distinguishinsf Excellencies of Ke- 
markable Scripture Personages. By Rev, Eobebt 
Huston. ISmo., pp. 245. 

AMOS ARMFIELD; 

Or, the Leather-covered Bible. Five Illustrations. 
ISmo., pp. 152. 

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS. 

By Charlotte Elizabeth. Seven Illustrations, 
ISmo., pp. 128. 

H 3 



BOOKS FOR SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-streer, JSew York. 



JOHN WHEELER'S 

Two Uncles ; or, Launching into Life. A btcry for 
Boys. Three Illustrations. ISmo. 

LITTLE MABEL 

And her Sunlit Home. By a Lady. Four Illustra- 
tions. 18nio. 

CLABA, 

The Motherless Youn^ Housekeeper; or, the Life 
of Faith. By Una Lock:e. Three Illustrations, 
ISino. 



With the Little Folks. By Robix Banger. Ten 
Illustrations. 



PLEASANT TALKS 

With the Little Folks 
Illustrations. 

DAISY DOWNS; 

Or, What the Sabbath-School can do. By the 
Author of the " Willie Books.'' Four Illustrations. 
18mo. 

BENJIE AND HIS FRIENDS; 

Or, Coming Up and Going Down. By Mrs. C. M. 
Edwards, Author of ** My Sister Margaret," etc. 
Three Illustrations. 18mo. 

WHAT CATHARINE DID, 

And wha' became of it. Three lUustrations. 18mo. 



KATIE SEYMOUR; 

Or, how to make others hi 
tions. 18mo. 

MAY COVERLEY: 

The Story of God's dealings 
Ghl. Five Illustrations, li 

0— ^ 



Or, how to make others happy. Three Illustra- 
tions. 18mo. 



The Story of God's dealings with a poor Fatherless 
Ghl. Five Illustrations. ISmo. 



® 



EOOES FOR SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

SOO Malberry-street, New YorK. 



GUIDE TO THE SAVIOUR; 

Or, the Lambs of the Flock led to their Great Shep- 
herd. By Eev. Daniel Wise, Author of " The In- 
fant Teacher's Manual," etc. With IllustrationSw 
]8mo., pp. 123. 

CHESTNUT HILL; 

Or, EecoUections of my Childhood. By a Minister. 
Two Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 126. 

THE TAHTAR TRIBES. 

Three Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 183. 

THE HOMELY CHILD; 

Or, Handsome is that Handsome does. Three Illus- 
trations. 18mo., pp. 83. 

BE TRUE. 

A Story for Little and Grown-up Children. By 
Mrs. Maxwell. 18mo., pp. 101. 

BE WISE. 

A Story in Seven Chapters. By Mrs. Maxwell. 
Two Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 94. 

THE FARMER BOY; 

Or, a Child of Providence led from the Plow to the 
Pulpit. With several Incidents of his Ministry 
Four Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 160. 

A VISIT TO THE CATACOMBS; 

Or, First Christian Cemeteries at Kome: and a 
Midnight Visit to Mount Vesuvius. By Selina 
BuNBURY. 18mo., pp. 108. 

OUR ENGLISH BIBLE. 

18mo., pp. 218. 



& 



s a 

BOOKS FOE SUOAT-SOHOOLS. 

300 Mnlberry-street, New York. 

A MISSIONARY NARRATIVE 

Of the Trmmphs of Grace, as seen in the Conver- 
sion of Kafirs, Hottentots, Fingoes, and other Na- 
tives of South Africa. By Samuel Young, twelve 
years a Missionary in that Country. 18mo., pp. 160. 

THE YOUNG MINER: 

A Memoir of John Lean, Jr., of Camborne, in the 
County of Cornwall. By John Bustard. 18mo., 
pp. 59. 

PRAISE AND BLAME. 

By Eev. Charles Williams, Author of "Facts, not 
Fables.*' With Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 112. 

THE LIFE OF MOSES. 

By Eev. Daniel Smith. Illustrated. ISmo., pp. 224. 

HISTORY OF NELLY VANNER. 

Written expressly for Children. By John Curwen. 
ISmo., pp. 76. 

INTERESTING- STORIES 

For the Entertainment and Instruction of Young; 
Eeaders. Illustrated. Two volumes, ISmo. 

THE BROKEN HYACINTH; 

Or, Ellen and Sophia. By Mrs. Sherwood, Author 
of ''Little Henry and his Bearer." Three Illus- 
trations. ISmo., pp. 96. 

DEAF AND DUMB. 

Eecollections of tho Deaf and Dumb. 18mo», 
pp. 103. 

THE LIFE OF HEZEKIAH. 

By Eev. Daniel Smith. 18mo., pp. 77. 



^ « 

BOOKS FOE SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 

200 Mulberry-street, IVew York. j 



LIFE or EEV. LEGE EIOHMOED, 

Author of the " Dairyman's Davighter," " Young 
Cottager," etc. By Stephen B. Wickens. 18mo.. 

pp. 272. 

MEMOIRS OF JOHN PEEDEEIO OBEELHf, 

Pastor of Waldbach, in the Ban De La Koche. 
18mo., pp. 200. 

MEMOIES OP THE LATE JAM TAYLOR 

By Isaac Taylor. "With a Brief Introduction, by 
Rev. Daihel Smith. 18mo., pp. 119. 

KS ESSAY ON SEOEET PEATEE, 

As the Duty and Privilege of Christians. By 
Joseph Entwisle, Minister of the Gospel. ISmo., 
pp. 40. 

HISTOEY OF THE PATEIAEOH JACOB. 

By Rev. Daniel Smith. Five lUustrations. IBmo., 
pp. 189. 

THE BEKEVOLEST TEA7ELEE; 

Or, the New Sunday-School. By Rev, Daniel 
Wise. Illustrated. 18mo., pp. 132. 

SEETOHES OP THE WALDEUSES. 

18mo., pp. 221. 

THE OLAS^-LEADEE'S FIEESIDE; 

. Or, Home Conversations on Important Subjects. 
Two Illustrations. 18mo., pp. 132. 

MEMOIE OF DE. WILLIAM P. AEKOLD: 

With Extracts of his Letters written from the West 
Indies. 18mo., pp. 100. 



Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: May 2005 

PreservationTechnologies 

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 

1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive 
Cranberry Township, PA 16066 
(724) 779-?1 1 1 



